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Date night

It may not have been an official date, but Marquette's Welcome Week king and queen, Jan van der Vieboom and Mary Ellen Jaeger, sure look cute sharing a soda in 1957.  The king and queen were selected from among the freshmen to reign at the big "Welcome Hop" held at the close of the weeklong program.

Sometimes a date is pure magic, whether it's at a dance, a beloved campus hangout or just an impromptu gathering in the dorms. In honor of Valentine's Day, Marquette Magazine asked alumni on Facebook and Twitter about their most memorable college dates, and soon we were flooded with tales of campus romance. Here is just a sampling of the stories we heard.

"My then-boyfriend, Jason DeRusha (Comm '97) sent me on a scavenger hunt across campus before he proposed to me in September 1997. Each spot was special to our relationship — the site of a fun date, our first kiss, an inside joke. I stopped at Dairy Queen, Tower Hall, St. Joan of Arc Chapel and Helfaer Theatre, until he met me at Père Marquette Park with a ring. Thirteen years of marriage and two kids later, we are still nostalgic for our Marquette days!"

—Alyssa (Bannochie) DeRusha, Bus Ad '98

"I met my wife, Julie, my sophomore year at Marquette. We both were living at West and were just beginning to get to know each other. On Halloween, West had a costume party/dance and my roommate and I went as Popeye and Olive Oyl. Unfortunately for me, I drew Olive Oyl. That night, while in full Olive Oyl beauty, black skirt and all, I asked Julie out on our first date. We have been together ever since."

—Paul Bonoma, Bus Ad '87

"John and I met outside an English office (I was starting my second year as a teaching assistant  and he his first) in an old apartment building on campus in the fall of 1961. I was impressed with his discussion of the New York Times book review section and his obviously New York City style of dress — salt and pepper tweed suit and dark green shirt and tie. He must have taken note of me because he seemed to take the same route I did walking around campus. We had our first date in December 1961, a double date with a graduate student in theology and his companion. We walked about a half hour to Julie's, a bar and lounge with live music. I was taken aback by John's dancing prowess and learned he had taken lessons at Arthur Murray. He taught me how to do the cha-cha, tango and lindy hop! We must have danced for six hours, then walked back to campus to attend 4 a.m. Mass at Gesu Church. John dozed off during Mass, but that was the beginning of our dating. We were engaged in June 1962 and married in August 1963."

— Sandra Mulryan, Arts '62

"My most memorable college date was my first date with my 'L.I.M.O. driver crush.' Yes, I actually did call him this, as did all of my roommates. He came over to our apartment in the 2040 Lofts where we talked, laughed and got to know one another. He sat through numerous episodes of Lost, my favorite show, and 'let' me beat him in Duck Hunt. Little did I know at the time that this casual, innocent first date was the start of something much bigger. This past November, I was blessed enough to marry my 'L.I.M.O. driver crush,' David Porter, at Gesu."

—Jennifer (Ferrasci-O'Malley) Porter, Comm '09

"My parents, Gabriel Popovich and Ludmille Szymanski Popovich, were students at Marquette during the Great Depression. Dad was from Indiana and lived in a dorm, the former Nicholas Hall, and Mom was a Milwaukee native who lived with her parents. A night on the town meant riding the streetcar and 'fine dining' at the White Castle on Wells Street. Mom purchased their wedding license with 300 pennies. They married on Nov. 11, 1939, and the following June they graduated — the first married couple to do so in Marquette history."

—Mary Popovich, Arts '73

"I met my future husband, Theran, going to the 6 p.m. Mass at Gesu our freshman year. We had mutual friends who wanted to go to Mass together. I remember being very intrigued about this cute guy wearing shorts the first weekend in December. It was an unseasonably warm day, but by the time we left Mass it was snowing. Hard to forget the guy wearing shorts in a snowstorm. Now 13 years and three children later, he is still the love of my life."

—Jessica Motl, H Sci '02

"My date had a friend outfitted in a black suit and sunglasses chauffer us around in a decked-out minivan complete with candles in the cup holders. First stop, the Milwaukee Zoo light show. Next, we had a delicious dinner at Pieces of Eight overlooking the lake. Then, we parked near the lake, hung out and had great conversation. The evening ended back at McCormick, where my date had dessert waiting in his dorm room. This night reined as 'Best Date Ever,' until May 2008, when Andrew planned a date that mimicked that 2002 date but ended with an engagement ring!"

—Julia Doyle, Arts '06

"I saw him the first day at Marquette in a crappy house on 18th and State. I started dating his roommate for awhile, then wised up. He asked me out by saying he had birthday money from his grandma. (Yeah, sure.) He was my peer adviser because I kept failing accounting. We broke up. We reconnected after I graduated. He invited me back to Milwaukee to brunch and told me he was going to marry me. I laughed. We got married, had three beautiful children and are still going strong, 28 years later — my best friend Tom and I."

—Karen Waldkirch, Jour '82

"Love bloomed in the springtime of 1993. I was a research assistant in the economics graduate program and Gwen was a speech-language pathology junior who worked for the economics department secretary. I sent her a Valentine card and we started dating. We have been married for almost 16 years and have two great kids. I regularly speak at Career Nights to talk to students about my education and how I apply it to my job. Inevitably someone asks the question, 'What is the most valuable experience you had at Marquette?' Without hesitation I answer, 'It was meeting my wife.'"

—Jim Orheim, Bus Ad '92

"In March of 2008 my current girlfriend and I were freshmen in the Pep Band traveling with the men's team to Anaheim. On our off day the whole band went to Disneyland and although we weren't a couple at the time, I consider that to be our first date. We went on rides, saw shows and capped the day off by watching the fireworks show side by side. I couldn't ask for anything more amazing than spending an entire day at the happiest place on earth with the girl who makes me the happiest man on earth."

—Mark Parilla, Arts '11

"My fiancee, Ashley L. Rapp, and I first met for a very informal lunch date at Straz Tower on Sept. 27, 2006. We had initially talked to one another over Facebook the summer before but decided to finally meet up for lunch that day. By January 2007, we were officially dating and after five years are engaged to be married this year at Gesu Church! (The Army willing — pending a possible deployment to Afghanistan.)"

—2LT Samuel P. Thompson, Bus Ad '10

"I met my husband, Ryan, in front of St. Joan of Arc Chapel. I thought he was cute. He said he like the band Verve Pipe, who were from his home state. I said, 'Me, too!' Afterward, I ran home and told my friend Margie that 'I met this guy and I want to marry him!' Our first date was in November, and it was a men's basketball game against Notre Dame. Marquette won, and we celebrated with dinner at Real Chili. Fifteen years later, we still sit and watch basketball — sometimes with chili."

—Christina McAlvey, Bus Ad '01

"It was Feb. 20, 2008, a Wednesday. I had skipped out on meeting with friends to study with my crush. 'Studying' turned into nonstop talking and laughing for over an hour. We then headed to Jimmy John's for food. Meanwhile, our conversation continued, eventually including stories of past romances and heartbreak. As an excuse to keep the night going, I asked for a ride downtown in his car. When he dropped me at Straz later, he called me 'Dear' and I thought he might like me, too. Four years later and undeniably inseparable, we still don't study well together."

—Annamarie Nelson, Arts '11