Camillus, N.Y. -- As the clock struck midnight at the start of Easter Sunday, Michelle Fox's boyfriend uncorked a bottle of her favorite wine.

Fox, whose ex-husband five years ago accidentally shot her in the face and stripped her of her sight, had been dating Mike Notaro for about three years. The couple met at a Reiki share, where a group of local practitioners got together to do the healing and relaxation therapy.

Fox thought Notaro was pouring champagne, and began to get suspicious. He told her to taste the wine, Black Jewel from Earle Estates Meadery in the Finger Lakes.

Fox's two daughters, 5 and 10, had already gone to bed.

Sitting on the couch, they sipped and talked about the Sunday newspaper, which would feature the story of Fox's recovery and her prosthetic face on the front page.

"I had my interview ... and I said some things that I think will be in the article, so I wanted to let you know about it now," he said to her.

Her mind raced: "What would you say that I wouldn't like?" she asked.

"Then he paused and said, 'Michelle. You know I love you.' As he said it he was looking over at me and I'm thinking to myself he's not going to do what I think he's going to do, and sure enough that's when he asked me, 'Will you marry me?' "

"I had a flood of butterflies," Fox said. "I felt almost numb I was filled with so much emotion. I thought I was going to cry. I was so touched and overwhelmed."

Fox breathlessly whispered, "Yes." Unable to hear her, Notaro laughed and said "You didn't answer me!" Then she repeated her answer over and over.

Together, they slipped the size 5, princess cut diamond wrapped in a yin yang shaped diamond-studded white gold band over her knuckle. He described the ring, which the owner of Behind the Iron Gates in Syracuse had given to him for free.

The owner of Behind the Iron Gates in Syracuse gave Notaro a diamond engagement ring. Photo Courtesy of Mike Notaro.

Notaro's proposal was unexpected, Fox said, but Notaro was worried she had already found out. Excited about the ring, he told a handful of friends and acquaintances of his plan.

After telling the girls and Fox's mother and father, the couple went to Easter Mass.

They arrived to Holy Family Catholic Church as the first Mass was letting out. As they approached, churchgoers poured out, thanking Fox for sharing her inspiring story.

The couple is aiming to get married two years from now, but will "listen to the universe" and pick a date that feels right when the time nears.