Ayanna and Carl met in 2015 during an Intro to Philosophy class at UWM. Ayanna saw Carl from a distance and asked for his notes. A few weeks later, they hung out at UWM's Student Union and had their first date at Swing Park. And the rest, as they say, is history.
On Sept. 19, 2020, Carl surprised Ayanna by proposing at Swing Park, in the exact place they had their first date. Now almost a year happily married, Ayanna and Carl enjoy being back in Milwaukee surrounded by family and friends. Ayanna works at UWM’s Black Student Cultural Center as a student success coach, and Carl is a doctoral candidate at the University of Wisconsin-Madison in the Department of Educational Leadership & Policy Analysis.
Ohyun and Katelyn Kwon’s story begins on Frederick Avenue, where they were neighbors. Katelyn’s roommates encouraged her to go on a date with Ohyun, who was the president/captain of the Milwaukee Panther soccer club, and soon she was spending every weekend at Engelmann Stadium. The week of Katelyn’s college graduation, Ohyun proposed on Frederick Avenue where it all began. Ohyun graduated with a kinesiology degree and a business minor. After a few years as a personal trainer, he pivoted into helping manage law firms, thanks to that business minor. Ohyun works for Ogletree and Deakins in Milwaukee and plays soccer for the Milwaukee Bavarians club. Ten years later, Katelyn still spends weekends at a soccer field. Katelyn graduated with a BS in early elementary education, part of the first cohort to obtain her ESL license and degree. Katelyn is a kindergarten teacher at a private school in Mequon, and before that taught at St. Anthony in Milwaukee for six years. A rare autoimmune disease caused some fertility struggles, so their son, Mason, now 2½, is their miracle baby. They live in Ozaukee County with their dog, Coco, where they hope to grow their family. “Thank you for allowing us to share our story,” Katelyn said. “UWM brought the love of my life, and truly the most wonderful human. We are so thankful.” (At left is courtesy of Ohyun and Katelyn Kwon; Photo at right by Sophia Savage Photography)
Scott and Caitlin Rejholec met through a mutual friend in 2013 in the East Wing of the library, where they were all studying for their dreaded physics class. Scott likes to joke that their first date was at Walmart when he invited Caitlin to go grocery shopping. Their first real date was at Via Downer, which is now BelAir Cantina, on Caitlin's 20th birthday. They have fun memories of their time at UWM, such as riding bikes to class and Scott visiting Caitlin while she was working as barista at the Grind. Scott graduated in 2015, Caitlin in 2016. They live on a farm (Our First Farm on Instagram and Facebook) in Plymouth, Wisconsin, with their two boys, two beagles, two cows and too many chickens to count. The chickens provide organic eggs, and Caitlin makes and sells elderberry syrup.
Drew and Nicole met in a film studies class in 2003. Both lovers of film, they quickly found themselves drawn to one another and going to see the latest movies at the Downer and Oriental. Their first official date was seeing the great French horror film “Eyes Without a Face” at the UWM Union Cinema. Their love of movies and one another has lasted for over two decades, through Drew earning his PhD in Cinema and Media Studies at UCLA and Nicole working for the Director’s Guild of America and the Oscars. Drew is now a professor of Film Studies at Texas A&M University-Texarkana, and Nicole is a labor relations associate for Netflix. They still pop by UWM whenever they’re in town and keep in touch with many of the classmates and professors they had during their undergraduate years.
Arcadia and Adam met in the Peck School of the Arts in their Intro to Art Education course in fall 2014. After a semester of not talking to each other and Adam being too shy to say hello, Arcadia made the first move to hang out. Their first date was on New Year’s Eve in 2014, and they have been inseparable ever since. Rather quickly, they realized they had a unique connection. Over the years, they have shared their love of art making, watching films, getting tattooed and enjoying time with friends. In 2018, they adopted their wonderfully large cat, Frasier. They got married at Hubbard Park in October 2019 only a few blocks from their first apartment together in Shorewood and bought their first home in May 2020. In May of 2022, their son, Asa, was born. Now, they seize every moment to appreciate family, nature, art-making and life together as much as possible.
Elle and Teresa met during their freshman year at UWM in fall of 2020 outside of the Zelazo Center before their choir class. They’ve been together for over three years now, and love doing crafts together, going on walks on the trails in the woods and near the river, spending time with each other's families and cooking meals together. Teresa is studying Communication Sciences and Disorders at UWM in hopes of becoming a speech and language pathologist, and Elle plans to become an elementary school art teacher.
The first semester Kitonga and Javon had a class together, they didn’t say a word to each other. One sat in the front of the auditorium, and the other in the back. The next semester, they sat closer in proximity and began chatting. A few weeks later, Kitonga was sitting on a bench outside class when Javon walked by, waved casually, and went up the stairs smiling. At the top, she paused, hoping Kitonga would follow. He did. They exchanged numbers and began dating. They soon realized that they had many connections. Their families knew each other – Javon's sisters went to grade school with Kitonga, and they had attended some of the same events as children and likely interacted. Kitonga and Javon went on to earn master’s and PhDs from UWM, and have a family together. From that first glance in Mitchell Hall, they have built a relationship that has lasted for 25 years.
Almost 10 years ago, Sam and Ellie met outside of Sandburg Residence Hall at a welcome picnic for the Undergraduate Research at UWM summer program. Over the next four weeks, Sam worked in the Digital Fabrication Lab on a project that 3D-printed prostheses for children, while Ellie pored over historical maps of Central Asia in the American Geographical Society Library for an Urban Histories and Contested Geographies project. These four weeks were foundational for several lasting relationships – academic, professional, platonic and romantic. That fall, they reconnected, and the spark from summer was still there. It became obvious that Ellie had to expand Sam’s culinary palate, beginning with their first date. After a movie at Sandburg Cinema, Ellie suggested a late-night dinner at Oakland Gyros. Sam graduated with a degree in mechanical engineering, and Ellie completed her bachelor’s in architecture. On a trip to Germany in 2019, Sam proposed at a UNESCO World Heritage Site in Hamburg that he had seen while studying abroad. This time, Sam expanded Ellie’s perspective with hours of exploring German museums and cities. They married in 2021, and live in Wauwatosa with their Australian shepherd, Chai. Sam works as a mechanical engineer in Menomonee Falls and Ellie is an architectural designer on Milwaukee’s Near West Side.
One of our favorite annual traditions is the Valentine’s Day photo gallery.
We invite alumni, and current students too, to tell us how they met and fell in love at UWM. Couples share their stories about noticing each other across the lecture hall, sharing first tentative dates at the Union Cinema and Oakland Gyros, and building a life together.
It’s enough to warm the coldest heart on a mid-February day.
Check out this year’s edition with eight delightful couples.
