Soldier Surprises Girlfriend With On-Field Proposal In Front Of 43,000 Cardinals Fans

By: Kelly York

Happy Memorial Day. To honor the men and women who have died while serving in the U.S. Armed Forces, we bring you this special marriage proposal that took place during the pre-game ceremonies of the St. Louis Cardinals baseball game on Friday. Specialist Will Johanson, a military policeman assigned to the 463rd Military Police Company in Afghanistan, surprised his girlfriend, Shelby Fetsch, during the FOX Sports Midwest “This One’s For You” military appreciation pre-game show on Friday. An elaborate ruse was required to pull this off. First, it required Johanson to secretly take his two-week leave ahead of schedule and, second, to have Fetsch throw out the game's ceremonial first pitch. Fetsch was convinced that she was selected to throw out the first pitch because her boyfriend was stationed in Afghanistan. Little did she know that the masked, camouflage-clad catcher behind the plate was her boyfriend, Will, who she hadn't seen in six months. After Fetsch tossed the first pitch, Johanson took off his catcher's mask and walked toward the pitcher's mound. After of few seconds, Fetsch recognized the catcher as her boyfriend and ran into his arms. At that point, in front of 43,000 baseball fans, Johanson went down to one knee and proposed to Fetsch to the delight of cheering crowd. "I love you and I want to spend the rest of my life with you," said Johanson. Of course, she said, "Yes." "I was freaking out when I saw him. I was like there's no way that's him," Fetsch told KSDK.com. "I was in complete shock that he would do that in front of 43,375 people." Johanson explained to KSDK.com, "I didn't think it was going to be on the field, with live TV in front of everybody. I thought maybe it was going to be in the stands. But since it happened the way it did it was more than I could have even planned or imagined." "He did it big and it will be the most memorable moment of my life," said Fetsch. Johanson and Fetsch met 18 months ago and had been dating for six months, most of that time a half a world apart. They've shared thousands of emails and spoke via Skype. Johanson flies back to Afghanistan in two weeks.  Johanson and his company are currently stationed at Bagram Air Field, Afghanistan, in support of Operation Enduring Freedom. During the Cardinals broadcast, soldiers of the 463rd Military Police Company witnessed the Johanson proposal and were seen waving a “GO Cardinals” poster from their operating base in Afghanistan. With the time difference, the game started at 4:30 a.m. Afghan time. Check out the video of the momentous event. Link will open in new window... Click here. Visit Ben David Jewelers on Facebook Visit BenDavidJewelers.com