About Us

About the bride

 

 Dyna Lee Donnell was born in Austin, Texas on January 17, 1979. She is the youngest of four children and loved growing up in a big family. Being only a year younger than her brother TJ, Dyna loved playing sports, playing in the dirt and pretty much anything else her big brother was doing! After graduating from Westwood high school, Dyna attended several colleges, (We like to call it the “Tour of Texas”) she landed in the gracious home of her sister Dana and sister’s husband Slate (he's like another sister really ;-)) in Beaumont, Texas, and graduated from Lamar University…which we also like to call “Harvard on the Neches.”  

Throughout the years Dyna has had numerous occupations from being a mortgage loan officer to an outside sales representative. But the job she always enjoyed more than anything is personal training.

Dyna is currently self employed as a personal trainer and works out of a gym in Lakeway, Texas, just outside of Austin. She finds inspiration everyday in the clients she trains and considers herself blessed to be doing every day what she loves to do.

About the groom

 

Lonn Alan Laursen was born in Fond du Lac, Wisconsin on February 6, 1972.   Growing up in Wisconsin, he loved going to his grandparents house to visit.  Grandpa would take him fishing and teach him woodworking in his shop.  Today Lonn's office is adorned with treasured hand-carved wood pieces and trophies from his grandfather.
Lonn spent the rest of his childhood in San Antonio, Texas.  He was a very talented All-State tennis player and also enjoyed skate boarding!  Lonn had long hair in high school!  At age 18, Lonn's best friend Jon Wyrick introduced Lonn to lifting weights and he loved it.  He then moved to Dallas to live with his dad Bill and stepmom Nita for a few years.  Lonn later entered several bodybuilding and powerlifting competitions to showcase all of his hard work in the gym, placing very well at all the events!
Today Lonn is self employed as a personal trainer at Gym One in Austin, Texas.  Everyday he inspires others around him to work harder and be better.

How we met

Lonn and Dyna met in January of 2000 at a gym where Lonn was personal training. Dyna was going to school and got a part time job at the front desk of Fitness Connection.  After flirting with her every day, she finally agreed to go out to lunch with him. 

On their first date Lonn took Dyna to eat lunch at the popular Shady Grove restaurant. It was February and a beautiful day so they sat outside. Lonn was polite. He opened the car door for her, he pulled her chair out for her as she sat down. 

                “So far, so good.” Dyna thought. 

Until, Lonn’s phone rang…and he answered it. Strike one!

But he redeemed himself quickly as he politely told the person on the other end of the phone that…   
"I’m at lunch with Dana, I’ll have to call you back.”  DANA!? (Ironically that is my sister's name ;-) )

My name is DYNA! Strike two!  But there was never a strike three...and still hasn't been one.

And so the story goes… now we live happily ever after! (he loves it when I tell that story, don't let him fool ya!)