She Didn’t Expect to Date a Shofar Player

Caroline Goldfarb, a comedy writer and producer, never imagined falling for a shofar player; Michael Gropper, a prominent Los Angeles shofar player who had little interest in social media, felt the same. A spontaneous band of matchmakers — cousins and friends who turned up trick-or-treating on Halloween 2024 — nudged them together.

Their first date at Cosette Wine Bar quickly turned into something more. They bonded over family, a love of Los Angeles, Stevie Wonder, sour candy and tinned fish — Ms. Goldfarb later co-founded Fishwife Tinned Seafood Co. — and even grocery runs to Costco, where debates over olive oil became a running joke.

After a second date at Carnival and a third in downtown Los Angeles, they were “off to the races.” Mr. Gropper proposed at halftime of a Rams game on Oct. 2, 2025, blasting an oversize ram’s horn borrowed from a community member and then getting down on one knee on the Rams’ mascot’s horn.

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