Friends Come Together For A Golden Surprise

By HOLLY RINE '16

When it came time for Nick Garcia ’11 to order his Aggie Ring, he had a different plan in mind for how he was going to spend that money. Telling then-girlfriend Taylor Nugent ’12 that he simply no longer wanted an Aggie Ring, he secretly stashed the money away to put toward surprising her with an engagement ring. 

When Nick proposed to Taylor in November 2012, the truth was revealed—and ever since that day, Taylor knew she wanted to get Nick his Aggie Ring. However, life for the newlywed Garcias got busy and a master’s program took them to Denver. Upon their recent return to Texas, Taylor was visiting with a friend in College Station when the idea of surprising her husband with an Aggie Ring was born.

Harnessing the power of social media, she started a secret Facebook group that included friends, family and Nick’s college roommates. To Taylor’s surprise, the group was a huge success and within two weeks they had raised enough money to buy Nick’s Aggie Ring. “Everyone was so generous and excited about the idea,” Taylor said. Without Nick knowing anything about it, she ordered his Aggie Ring this past November.

Then in January, Taylor’s stepfather, Dave Morris ’89, got Nick to campus under the guise of a special Kyle Field tour. Morris brought Nick to the Clayton W. Williams, Jr. Alumni Center, where more than 30 friends and family members were waiting to happily surprise someone who meant so much to them. 

Photo By John Dale

In front of the group was Taylor Garcia, holding the Ring box open so her husband could see the big surprise.

Photo by John Dale

Taylor said Nick was teary-eyed and very humbled in that moment. “It was really sweet,” she said. “I think we were all teary-eyed after that moment.” 

Photo by John Dale 

The group shared things that they appreciated about Nick before Taylor presented him with the Ring, slipping it on her husband’s finger.

Looking back on the surprise and the effort put forth by friends and family, Taylor credits it all to the special Aggie bond. “It was the Aggie Spirit that brought everyone together to raise the money for Nick’s Ring,” she said, adding that this Ring means more to Nick than if he had ordered it as a student—because everyone he cares about was a part of the reason he now has his Ring.

Photo by John Dale 

Taylor thinks that perhaps Joe B. Foster ’56 said it best: “When Aggies see a need, their energy and their selflessness draw others into the cause, and good things happen.”

Photo by John Dale