At a Glance
- David Balasa asked Haley Wiewiora to marry him inside a 1.5-million-gallon shark tank on Dec. 15, 2025.
- He swapped the diamond ring for a shark tooth to keep the real ring safe underwater.
- The entire Wonders of Wildlife aquarium team helped stage the surprise.
- Why it matters: The story shows how far partners will go to craft a once-in-a-lifetime, deeply personal proposal.
Michigan couple David Balasa and Haley Wiewiora turned a Midwest road trip into an engagement memory no one saw coming-least of all the bride-to-be, who thought she was simply ticking off a bucket-list shark dive.
Secret Road Trip
Balasa spent months mapping a nearly week-long, multi-state drive that ended in Springfield, Missouri. Wiewiora, normally the couple’s trip planner, handed over control for the first time.
- Balasa booked every stop.
- Wiewiora packed without knowing destinations.
- The final destination: Wonders of Wildlife National Museum & Aquarium.
“I had no idea where we were going,” Wiewiora told the Springfield News-Leader. “He had every minute planned.”
Inside the Shark Tank
The aquarium’s Out to Sea Shark Dive lets visitors descend into a 1.5-million-gallon habitat without scuba certification. Participants aged 10 and up wear air-supplied helmets and stand inside a steel enclosure while sand tiger sharks, brown sharks, Atlantic goliath groupers and reef fish swim inches away.
Balasa chose the setting because Wiewiora grew up on Lake Michigan and has worked as a lifeguard and swim instructor. “I’ve always kind of been considered a fish out of water,” she said.
The Underwater Proposal
When the couple reached the tank floor, aquarium staff held up two waterproof signs:
- “Will You Marry Me?”
- “I Said Yes!”
Instead of holding the diamond ring underwater, Balasa opened a box containing a shark tooth. He feared the actual ring could slip off and disappear among the fish.
“I, for sure, wasn’t expecting the proposal to happen while we’re in our Speedos,” Wiewiora laughed. “I did not know that that was what he meant.”
Family Surprise
Balasa’s planning didn’t stop at the tank walls. He arranged for Wiewiora’s parents and relatives to drive to the aquarium and watch from the underwater tunnel. Seconds after she said yes, the family greeted the couple.
He also presented a custom ring featuring:
- Diamonds from Wiewiora’s grandmother.
- Her late brother’s birthstone.
- A compartment holding a small amount of his ashes.
“I could just tell how much he takes note of how important my family is to me,” Wiewiora said. “We still got to have a semblance of home, even though we were hours away.”
From Dating App to Wedding Date
The pair met on Hinge two years earlier and quickly bonded over a shared love of water. Balasa insisted he would propose “when the time is right,” keeping Wiewiora guessing even though both agreed marriage was on the horizon.
After the aquarium staff dried them off, the newly engaged couple began making wedding plans. Venue booked, date chosen, they are now counting down to the ceremony.
According to News Of Los Angeles, the shark-tooth proposal has become one of the attraction’s most talked-about engagement stories, proving that love-like sharks-never loses its bite.
