A Love Story Inspired by The Dictionary Project

For many people, The Dictionary Project is about promoting literacy, learning, and a love of words. But for one couple in Fargo, North Dakota, it also became the beginning of a love story.

Ryan McManus and Heather Ranck of the Fargo-Moorhead Rotary Club first met years ago while volunteering with their local Rotary Club to distribute dictionaries to third graders — part of Fargo’s long-running participation in The Dictionary Project, since 2007. What started as a shared passion for education and community service soon turned into something much more.

In 2013, Mary French of The Dictionary Project sent the couple an unabridged Webster’s Dictionary—a gift that quickly became a symbol of their story. Later that year, Ryan and Heather were married, and their connection to words, learning, and service continued to grow.

Now, more than a decade later, their family’s love for dictionaries lives on through their two children, ages 12 and 10, who have quite literally grown up surrounded by words. Their newborn photos even featured the very same unabridged dictionary that first brought their parents together!

Most recently, the McManus children became the stars of a new video (shown below) celebrating The Dictionary Project and the power of words to inspire connection and lifelong learning.

“When I was in seventh and eighth grade, I competed in the National Spelling Bee,” Heather shared. “I used the Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary to study and prepare. Dictionaries have always been special to us—and now they’re part of our family story.”

From volunteering in classrooms to raising the next generation of word lovers, the McManus family embodies the heart of The Dictionary Project: bringing people together through the gift of words.