Proposal Lights Up Crowd At Shania Twain Show In Tinley

TINLEY PARK, IL — It wasn't at all the way Jake Roberts thought the proposal would go. In fact, it was his "plan B."

But it turned out pretty perfectly, as he dropped to a knee in the middle of a Shania Twain concert in Tinley Park July 1, phone flashlights glowing around them, the country singer crooning "From This Moment On."

It was his fiancée Liz's first concert—and it'll be a tough one to beat.

"I was in shock, I had no idea," said Liz Rickard, 25. "It was definitely a moment to remember."

Roberts, 21, was hoping for the shock factor—he surprised her with the tickets, too—but he had thought he'd propose more privately on a beach, followed by dinner and then springing the tickets on her. It would be a full-day affair, he thought. But work obligations snarled those plans a bit, Roberts said, and he realized he'd have to think on his feet a bit.

But he was asking her that question, no matter what. Which is exactly how doggedly he pursued her, Rickard told Patch.

The two Indiana residents met while working together at a pizza restaurant. Rickard had just endured a heartbreak at the end of a six-year relationship. She entertained a friendship with Roberts, but he made it clear he wanted more.

He would tell his friends of his intentions.

"I’m going to get this girl," he'd say, "and I’m going to marry her."

His determination was endearing, Rickard said.

"He was so determined, it was so cute," she said. "He was so determined to do everything and anything for me.

"He would say that that if he wouldn’t have gotten me, he would have kept trying, or he claimed he would have been single the rest of his life."

Roberts knew Rickard was special because of how comfortable he felt around her, he said.

"...my favorite part about Liz was that I felt like I didn’t have to hide a single thing," he said. "The second we became friends and started talking, I felt very comfortable talking to her about anything and everything. I know there’s some people in my life I can talk to about some things, but not everything. I never had somebody like that in my life."

Roberts decided he would propose, picked out the ring, and set the wheels in motion. He knew she wanted to go to a Shania Twain concert, and thought it could be the culmination of the night, after he proposed beforehand.

Rickard's love of Twain goes back to her childhood, she told Patch.

" I told him that if I ever go to a concert, I want my first concert to be a Shania Twain concert," she said. "My mom got me into it when I was little. She bought me a karaoke machine, I would sit in my room with a boa, a little rock star outfit, and I would pretend to be her."

Roberts, on the other hand, had to brush up on Twain's discography a bit before the concert. His sister pointed out several good love songs. But it was on a drive together when Liz blasted "From This Moment On," that it clicked for him.

"... it was a moment that we had," Roberts said. "I started to tear up, I didn’t want her to see. It hit home, and I thought, 'that’s the song.'"

Roberts clued in both of their moms. When the couple went to scope out the merch booth, Rickard's mom excitedly approached everyone around where they were standing in the lawn, cluing them in on what was to come and asking them to take photos and videos. The proposal was even shared on the venue's social media.

Rickard was stunned and elated.

"I had no idea he was going to do this, he’s definitely a man of his word," Rickard said. "He definitely stuck to what he wanted, it was really cute. He’s very determined, and I love that."

Roberts was "overwhelmed with joy.

"I cried, I was so excited that she said yes, just blown away," he said. "I was speechless, the feeling every time I watch the videos, I relive it. It’s very heartwarming. I just love it, I love it all."

The two will soon move into an apartment together, and plan on a longer engagement. Rickard is a registered behavior technician who works with children on the autism spectrum. Roberts is a sales representative with State Farm. The two hope for an intimate ceremony at City Hall, followed by a party for their friends and family.

Rickard knows he'll make it happen—whatever he tells her, he follows through. He said they'd move into an apartment together by summer, and they're weeks away from that happening. He said he'd make her his wife, and they're close to that being reality.

"He did amazing," she said, of the ring he picked out. "We always talked about getting married, I didn’t expect it to be so soon. We sat down and talked about it all the time, and he'd say, 'You are the one. I’m done looking.'

"I’ve been in a 6-year relationship, it’s crazy because he’s done more than what I had gotten in those 6 years with that other person."

The proposal might not have been what Roberts had initially planned, but Rickard couldn't have loved it more.

"He crushed it," she said. "He did absolutely amazing."