They Were Best Friends — Until That Trip to Mexico

Catherine Anne Singiser and Dr. Sara Guirguis Attalla started out as work colleagues who became close friends. Then came romance.

The two met in August 2021 when Dr. Attalla joined Inspira Medical Center Vineland, a gastroenterology practice in Vineland, N.J., where Ms. Singiser is a nurse practitioner. They shared an office, and Dr. Attalla said that Ms. Singiser became her go-to person for figuring out the practice’s logistics.

“Catherine had a friendly, approachable personality that made it easy to engage in mini conversations between seeing patients,” Dr. Attalla said. “At some point, we got to talking about our personal lives and interests, but we never socialized outside of the office.”

Dr. Attalla, 41, was married to another woman at the time and was going through the process of getting a divorce (which was finalized in September 2023). “Catherine was the first person I confided in regarding my marital issues, and she was always ready to listen,” she said.

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Dr. Attalla’s and Ms. Singiser’s interaction beyond the workplace began in April 2022 when they both attended a benefit for a former colleague who had died from ovarian cancer. “Sara and I hung out there, and my friends who were also there commented on how we had a connection,” Ms. Singiser, 38, said. “I had never been with another woman, and we both laughed off their comments.”

After the benefit, Dr. Attalla, who lived in Swedesboro, N.J., and Ms. Singiser, who lived in Pittsgrove, N.J., about 25 minutes away, began seeing each other regularly. They went to restaurants and escape rooms and cooked meals for each other in their homes.