Craven Herald News
Teacher's surprise 'I do' on Glusburn school trip
8:50am Saturday 11th February 2012
A primary school teaching assistant received the surprise of her life during a trip to a moor above Sutton-in-Craven.
What seemed like a simple visit to Lund’s Tower for a geography curriculum topic turned out to be something very different for Jo Simons, whose boyfriend Matt Dobson asked her to marry him in front of 34 surprised year four pupils from Glusburn Primary School.
“Jo’s been wanting me to ask her for a while and she said she wanted it to be a big surprise,” said Mr Dobson, of Middleton.
“I originally thought about trying to ask her in the classroom at school, but then I heard that her class was going up to the Pinnacle. It was the perfect opportunity because I picked up the engagement ring the same day they were doing the walk.”
Mr Dobson didn’t know whether the the group was visiting Wainman’s Pinnacle, above Cowling, or Lund’s Tower above Sutton.
So the 31-year-old walked to Wainman’s Pinnacle before realising Miss Simons and the pupils must have walked to Lund’s Tower.
“It was really foggy, but I decided to walk from one Pinnacle to the other. It was only about a mile, but the fog was so thick I wasn’t entirely sure I was going in the right direction,” he said.
“Fortunately I heard one of the children shouting, which was good because I couldn’t see the tower until I was practically on top of it.”
Arriving at the tower, Mr Dobson introduced himself to the children and their chaperones.
He then proceeded to declare his love for Miss Simons and got down on bended knee to ask his surprised girlfriend to marry him.
“Of course Jo said yes, to a roar of approval from the ecstatic children,” said Glusburn headteacher Richard Hunt.
“I was absolutely gobsmacked,” said Miss Simons, 30, of Sutton-in-Craven. “I wasn’t expecting it all. It’s almost like a blur and seems like it was all a dream.”
That statement could not be more true according to onlookers, who witnessed Mr Dobson emerge from the mist to make his proposal.
“The children were thrilled by the proposal because Miss Simons is extremely popular,” said Sue Dransfield, a higher level teaching assistant.
“Matt appeared from nowhere through the mist. It was very romantic. She talked about it all the way back down to the school.”
Miss Simons said the pupils were already asking about the positions of bridesmaids at the wedding.
“It looks like I’m going to have 30 bridesmaids,” said Miss Simons.
However, the youngsters may have to wait a couple of years as the wedding is provisionally being planned for 2014.