Natural beauty

Kaitlin Ann Burk & William Eli Mccarty October 13, 2019 • De Kalb

- Sandra Massey Buckley

Kaitlin Ann Burk and William Eli McCarty enjoy spending time in the natural beauty of Mississippi’s great outdoors. Kaitlin, from Philadelphia, did not grow up hunting, though she did go on occasion with her father. Eli, however, who grew up in Daleville, started hunting at the age of 7 with his father, and his passion for it grew every year.

“I think I really fell in love with hunting when I met Eli and saw how much he loved it,” Kaitlin says, adding that it became something they enjoyed together as a couple. And for a little more than four years, Kaitlin, a dental hygienist, and Eli, a journeyman electrician, did just that and grew in their commitment to one another.

“After two years of dating, Eli was diagnosed with Crohn’s disease,” Kaitlin shares. “It really took us by surprise. After living in the hospital off and on for about two months, we both knew we couldn’t live without each other. Everything we went through really brought us closer together.”

The couple became engaged, with the help of friends who orchestrated a memorable moment where Kaitlin found Eli down on one knee alongside their two dogs, Kali and Harli. “My best friend had made signs to go around their necks, reading ‘Mom, will you marry Dad?’ I was so in shock, and I don’t know if I ever said yes!”