LAKE PLACID – This Olympic Village is a place U.S. Rep. Elise Stefanik fell in love with as a child, when she’d travel to town to watch her younger brother compete in hockey tournaments. So when she took her boyfriend Matt Manda of Lawrence, Kansas, to the Adirondacks for the first time several years ago, Lake Placid was the destination to see the sites and taste the town.

“It’s a place where I spent a lot of time growing up,” Stefanik said. “My younger brother was a travel youth hockey player, so I spent many weekends seeing him play in Lake Placid, and other ice rinks. I wanted to show Matt the Olympic sites and visit some of the restaurants. He loved it!”

Two months ago, the 32-year-old Republican congresswoman and Manda took a respite from their busy schedule, which includes her serving the North Country in Washington, D.C., and campaigning for re-election, to return to Lake Placid. And this time, Manda, 33, surprised Stefanik by dropping to one knee and proposing to the congresswoman at the Mirror Lake Inn, before a celebratory dinner at the Interlaken Inn. She said yes.

Like the results of the Nov. 8 election, the date and location of their wedding are to be determined. So is where they will live afterward. When not in Washington, Stefanik calls her parents’ summer house in Willsboro home. But there is no denying the charm of this Olympic Village is a part of Stefanik and Manda’s engagement story.

Stefanik said some of the couple’s favorite places to visit in the village include Top of the Park, Lisa G’s “for their amazing wings,” and a place where she said the food can’t be beat, Liquids and Solids at the Handlebar. Elsewhere in the region, some of their favorite places include the Baxter Mountain Tavern – they both enjoy the smoked trout – Blue Moon Cafe in Saranac Lake for their Reubens, the Noonmark Diner in Keene Valley, Turtle Island Cafe for their burgers and Indian Bay Marina.

She said she’s also introduced him to places and things outside of the Tri-Lakes area that she’s loved all of her life.

“One of the Adirondack products that Matt has fallen in love with is Oscar’s More Than Mustard (of Warrensburg),” Stefanik said. “Matt didn’t even really like mustard before, but now he puts it on everything and needs an endless supply. My family has loved Oscar’s mustard for decades.”

Coming from Kansas, Stefanik said Manda has introduced her to Kansas City barbecue while their time in the Adirondacks has led him to love products from local Adirondack farms and breweries. She specifically mentioned how Manda loves Ausable Brewing Company in Keeseville – a place they went to the weekend they opened – Paradox Brewery and their “recent discovery,” Big Slide Brewery and Public House in Lake Placid.

“Their flights (beer samplers) are great, and the restaurant is awesome!” Stefanik said.

Stefanik is a skier, and she said Manda, an Eagle Scout, visited the Rocky Mountain region frequently to ski as a child. She said that for him, skiing out east has taken some time to get used to.

“He’s enjoyed Whiteface and Gore (in North Creek) during ski season and has adjusted to the ice,” she said. “I beat him down the slopes.”

She added that the couple also enjoys skiing and hiking in the Lake Champlain area and that Manda hiked several of the Adirondack 46 High Peaks over recent summer seasons. Manda is a marketing and communications director at a digital media company based-out of Alexandria, Virginia.

Stefanik is seeking to win her second term representing the North Country’s 21st Congressional District in the Nov. 8 election. Her challengers include Democrat Mike Derrick, a retired Army colonel from Peru, and Green Party candidate Matt Funiciello, a bakery owner from Glens Falls.