Attending a festival alone in a new city can be daunting. But on Aug. 27, 2016, the second day of Toledo Pride’s three-day festival, Daniel Everette Nester, who had recently moved to Toledo, Ohio, ventured outside his comfort zone — and was grateful that he did.
After stopping at Georgjz419, a bar that was hosting festival events, he met Eugene Joseph Yoscovits, who was there with his friend Christopher Fitzner.
Mr. Yoscovits, who lived in Detroit, said he couldn’t help but notice Mr. Nester there all alone.
“We were making eyes all night,” said Mr. Yoscovits, who goes by Geno. “I told my friend Chris that I thought Daniel was cute. Chris is a good wingman and helped me talk with Daniel.” The meeting intrigued them both enough to exchange phone numbers.
The two began texting, but August was a busy month for Mr. Nester. He was then the head cheerleading coach and spirit coordinator at Bowling Green State University. So, the two made plans for a first date about a month later.
On Sept. 19, 2016, Mr. Nester drove to Detroit and met Mr. Yoscovits at his home. The two then went to Standby, a nearby cocktail bar, and shared a drink called a Fibonacci’s Curse served in a giant, metal pineapple.
“Daniel playfully balanced it on his head, cracking us both up,” Mr. Yoscovits said. “That was the moment I fell in love with him.”
After drinks, they went for a walk and then to the Whiskey Disco nightclub to dance. “Daniel’s a great dancer,” Mr. Yoscovits said. “I love when he turns it on and does his thing.”
The couple shared their first kiss that night. And, the next day, Mr. Nester called Mr. Yoscovits and asked him to be his boyfriend.
Just eight months later, Mr. Nester lost his job. The two took a leap of faith, and Mr. Nester moved into Mr. Yoscovits’ loft in Detroit. “It turned out to be one of the best decisions we ever made,” Mr. Yoscovits said.
In October 2017, Mr. Nester was offered a job at the Georgia Institute of Technology as the head cheerleading coach and spirit coordinator. He asked Mr. Yoscovits to join him in Atlanta.
At the time, Mr. Yoscovits was a product development and regulatory affairs manager at Rocket Mortgage. When he told his manager he was thinking about moving to Atlanta but wanted to stay with the company, he was offered the position of director of state government and external affairs and allowed to work remotely.
The two moved to an apartment in the West Midtown area of Atlanta.
On June 28, 2019, while vacationing in Munich, Mr. Yoscovits proposed — but not before putting their relationship through a bit of a stress test. They had just completed a difficult hike up Roβstein and Buchstein in the German Alps. Mr. Nester, exhausted and frustrated from the demanding trek, was caught off guard.
“It was hilariously reminiscent of Patrick and David’s engagement in Schitt’s Creek,” Mr. Nester said, referring to an episode in the popular comedy series.
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On Feb. 14, 2020, Mr. Nester and Mr. Yoscovits bought a house in the Oakland City neighborhood of Atlanta. But it was destroyed just six months later during tropical storm Zeta. The couple had to be rescued from their roof by neighbors. They now live in a new home built on the same spot.
Mr. Nester, 35, who grew up in Laurel Fork, Va., spent most of his career as a cheer coach. He is now a program manager and senior executive assistant to the vice president at the Georgia Institute of Technology. He holds a bachelor’s degree from Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University in interdisciplinary studies and is pursuing an M.B.A. at Georgia State University.
Mr. Yoscovits, 38, is a senior digital product manager at an Atlanta-based fintech company. He has a bachelor’s degree in German studies from Wayne State University. He grew up in Trenton, Mich.
The two were married March 23 at the Westside Reservoir Park in Atlanta. Parton Waters, the drag persona of their mutual friend Gerome Stephens, who was ordained through Universal Life Church for the occasion, officiated. Three guests attended, Mr. Yoscovits’ mother, Danielle Yoscovits, and Mr. Nester’s parents, Ricky and Donna Nester. Dinner at Il Premio at the hotel Forth Atlanta followed.
Mr. Nester and Mr. Yoscovits also plan to have a wedding celebration on Sept. 20, 2026, which was their original wedding date. “But with the current political climate, we can’t ignore the fear that marriage equality may not be guaranteed in 2026,” Mr. Nester said.
Mr. Yoscovits said, “On the day of our wedding, I felt something I had never experienced so completely — a profound sense of belonging, as if, for the first time in my life, I was exactly where I was meant to be.”
