Former presidential candidate senator Tim Scott announced his engagement to his girlfriend, Mindy Noce, on Saturday, describing it as "the most exciting thing I'll do with my life besides making Jesus my Lord." Scott, 58, proposed to interior designer and mother-of-three Mindy Noce, 47, on the beach in Kiawah Island, South Carolina.
Scott's engagement to Noce comes just weeks after he introduced Noce at the third GOP presidential primary debate late last year. Scott, who has been a lifelong bachelor and traditionally private about his dating life, met Noce at church a year ago and bonding over Bible study he said that he knew he had found his 'soul mate.'
Engaged at Last
Scott, who represents the Palmetto State, shared the news of his engagement to Noce in a brief and heartwarming social media post. The post included a snapshot of the moment when Scott got down on one knee on a Kiawah Island beach in South Carolina to propose to the interior designer.
"She said YES," Scott tweeted. "Mindy, thank you for making me the luckiest man in the world."
He also cited Proverbs 18:22 from the Bible in his engagement announcement, quoting: "He who finds a wife finds what is good and receives favor from the Lord."
Scott told the Washington Post: "I've been very patient and prayerful, and I'm really excited and somewhat nervous." The pair plan to get married this year.
Scott placed an engagement ring on Noce's finger a day after formally endorsing Donald Trump for president.
He is now a strong contender for the Vice President position after withdrawing from the presidential race last year and officially endorsing Trump on Friday in New Hampshire.
"We need a president who sees Americans as one American family. And that's why I came to the very warm state of New Hampshire to endorse the next president of the United States, President Donald Trump," Scott said.
Love and Politics
Scott shared that he sought permission from Noce's parents to marry her two weeks before Christmas. He spent a month planning the proposal, initially considering asking her after a game of pickleball.
However, a friend suggested a more romantic setting, and Scott settled on Kiawah Island. Despite the cold weather, he faced the challenge of persuading Noce not to wear gloves during the proposal.
Scott said, "My joke is as soon as I saw her picture, I figured it out. But the truth is about two weeks into it, I knew there was something very different about her and her faith.
"In our first conversation that went about an hour and a half or two, we ended up deciding to do a Bible study together."
Noce, who had been previously married, proudly showed her new engagement ring when she attended church on Sunday morning, Scott said.
Noce has been living in South Carolina since she graduated from the College of Charleston, where she pursued a major in Health Science.
Currently, she serves as an interior designer at Atlantic Properties of Lowcountry, a real estate firm.
According to the firm's website, Noce became familiar with the area when her three older brothers were involved in football at The Citadel.
She has lived at Isle of Palms and Daniel Island for nearly eighteen years. Her Instagram account is filled with an array of photos featuring her interior design projects as well as group pictures with her colleagues.
Scott's previously private dating life led some within the party, especially those fixated on family values, to have questions or reservations about his relationship status.
