Written by Hannah Conlin
Love is in the air at TWO MEN AND A TRUCK®, and it is not just for the amazing brand that has been around 30 years and has seen continued success as the premier leader within the moving industry. Many couples within the company have met and fell in love through their employment with TWO MEN AND A TRUCK®.
Johanna and Ryan both worked at the Lansing, Mich., franchise when they first met; Johanna now works at Home Office as a retention and recruitment consultant and Ryan is now a manager for a granite fabrication and installation company. It all started with an unapproachable look, a hood, and a big red beard … and the rest is history.
Q: What were you doing at work when you first met your significant other?
Ryan: Johanna and I met when we were both in a weekly meeting.
Johanna: We were in a staff meeting when we first met. I was an administrative assistant, and he was a driver team lead.
Q: What was your first impression of your significant other when you met?
Ryan: She looked beautifully unapproachable.
Johanna: I first wondered what this guy’s story was, he seemed so calm and seemed so genuinely nice. He was wearing his TWO MEN AND A TRUCK® hoodie with his hood on, of course, if he has a hood, it will be on his head. He always rocked a big red beard, and everyone called him ‘Big Red’.
Q: Describe your first date.
Ryan: It was a typical innocent work lunch.
Johanna: I believe he conned me into going to lunch with him. I think it was Applebee’s.
Q: When did you realize you were in love?
Ryan: I can’t remember a specific moment, but I know it was within a year of first meeting her.
Johanna: I think I realized I was in love, when I wanted him to meet my parents, and friends. That didn’t happen very often, and my friends were taken back by this “big red” that I kept talking about. I found myself needing to talk to him about everything. It was just easy.
Q: Describe your engagement.
Ryan: Our engagement was perfectly unknowingly planned by her. She planned what she thought was a surprise birthday party for me and my best friend. She made food, set up the decorations, and invited almost everyone. Little did she know that I was in on it the whole time. I was freaking out from the moment I got the ring. I had the ring made by a guy in Chicago. It barely made it in the mail on time which didn’t help my nerves. So the day came, which as cliché as it sounds, was Valentine’s Day because my birthday is February 15. I have never been so nervous. She and her best friend placed pillow cases over my head and my friend’s head and they drove us to the party acting like they were so brilliant and that they had this awesome surprise. When we walked in the door they pulled the pillow cases off of our heads. Johanna had never been more tickled with herself thinking she had pulled it off. Then my best friend handed me the ring and the rest is history. It was awesome.
Johanna: Well, one thing you need to know about me, is that I am the nosiest person around. My coworkers can attest to that. So, he had to pull a fast one on me for me not to find out. So, we were out one night with our best friends, BJ and Katie. Katie out of nowhere said, “Let’s have a surprise birthday party for Ryan and BJ.” So, naturally I said that sounds like a great idea! We got to planning, and the only date we could do was Valentine’s Day, which I said was perfect, because I am not the biggest Valentine’s fan, and it would give people something to do. Ryan’s birthday is on February 15. Katie and I met, we created the guest list, the food list, and everything else that goes into a surprise party. I went out and bought all of the food and decorations.
Fast forward to that day. I was so tired, and the last thing I wanted to do was put on this party, I was dreading it. We told the guys we had a Valentine’s Day surprise for them and they couldn’t be around us all day. We spent the day decorating and making food. I asked Katie if it was appropriate to wear sweats to the party, and she said, “Absolutely not!” She made me get dressed up and curl my hair because we had time while the guys were out doing whatever guys do. When it came time for the surprise, we put pillow cases over their head and drove them to the party. We walked them into the house and pulled the pillow cases off their head and bam, surprise! I thought I was the most clever girlfriend in the world, and as I turned around to see his reaction, he was down on one knee and asked me to marry him! I was in such shock! Ryan, Katie and BJ pulled a real fast one on me that day. One of the best parts of the surprise on me, was that my parents and his parents had no idea that it was coming that night either. He did such a good job, he even had my girlfriends come into town for it! It was awesome!
Q: How do you balance your work life and personal lives?
Ryan: We try to take it easy at home. We leave work at the door and enjoy our time together, when she doesn’t have me working on projects on the house.
Johanna: We try to keep work at work. It is nice to be able to talk about things when we need to about work, because we both know the business, but we try really hard to keep a positive home. We enjoy doing house projects together, or mainly me managing his projects around the house.
Q: Describe your wedding.
Ryan: Our wedding was real easy going, we had no arguments about wedding plans. It was low stress and just a great time.
Johanna: Of course I thought our wedding was the best! It was a very low stress planning process, and wedding. He is very easy going, which is a great balance to me. Since this was the only time we are going to do this, we wanted to have a good time doing it, and have everyone feel relaxed. We got married on a lake in Michigan. It was a chilly and windy October day, which was obviously not in the plan, but we made the best of it. I was nervous, and I know he was too. One of the best parts of our wedding was having the old 66′ TWO MEN AND A TRUCK® truck there. Brig Sorber was gracious enough to bring it to the wedding, so we could get our pictures taken in front of it. He parked it in the perfect place for everyone to see.
The reception was an awesome party! Exactly what we had expected, surrounded by all of the people that we love. A special touch from our guests, Mike and Karen, was fireworks over the lake! We didn’t want the reception to end! I would definitely do it again, to Ryan of course.
Q: What advice do you have for other TWO MEN AND A TRUCK® couples?
Ryan: Keep the company’s best interest ahead of what you think is your best interest. If your relationship causes an issue at work, it’s most likely going to be a regret later in your relationship. Of the many things I learned working for TWO MEN AND A TRUCK®, the most important thing I learned is keeping a positive attitude at work and at home. If you do that, your Johanna will show up. But be careful, weddings are expensive! #lovetmt
Johanna: I would tell them not to fight it, but to be sure to keep your relationship out of work. Keep the company’s best interest at heart, after all, they are the reason why you two met. Also, take a chance on someone who you may not think is your type because he may turn out to be the perfect match for you. I know Ryan was for me.
We are very grateful for the opportunities that TWO MEN AND A TRUCK® has presented for both of us. We both are living examples of our core purpose, which is to Move People Forward®. Without TWO MEN AND A TRUCK® we wouldn’t be together, or in the place in our lives that we are. I am forever grateful for this company and everything it stands for. I can say that I am a TWO MEN AND A TRUCK® lifer.
We wish Johanna and Ryan Weitzel a lifetime of love and happiness!
TWO MEN AND A TRUCK® 