Meet four alumni couples who fell head over heels at Marquette
Class of ‘61
Bob, 72, majored in business and Joy, 72, majored in history and elementary education. Both are retired.
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Mark & Deann Kuchler
Class of ‘87
Mark, 46, majored in accounting and is a law partner at Ronaldson & Kuchler, L.L.C. Deann, 46, majored in education and is a reading specialist in the La Grange public school system.
Lost in the hubbub of block parties, beer and bars, Mark and Deann — two freshmen who never expected to meet their future spouse at Marquette University — found love. But in the mid 1980s, formal dates were a rarity. According to Deann, the dating scene involved groups of friends hitting up local pubs — most likely the Avalanche,”The ‘Lanche,” on 15th and Wells St. There, Mark (whose parents also found love at Marquette) and Deann reconnected their junior year, after meeting through Mark’s friend — one Deann used to date. “The joke is that I dated three of Mark’s friends before dating him,” Deann said. Mark asked Deann’s parents for her hand in marriage after she followed him to Chicago, where he attended law school at Loyola University. The Kuchlers were married in 1993. They now have four children and live in La Grange, Ill.
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Bernie & Kathleen Hudec
Class of ‘82
Bernie, 52, majored in marketing and currently works as a regional sales manager at Osram Opto Semiconductors. Kathleen, 51, majored in finance and works for Bank of America leasing in the global vendor division. Both work in Chicago.
In Marquette tradition, Kathleen Toomey and Bernie Hudec went to Real Chili with friends, The Mug Rack in the Union (a popular pub and sandwich joint), Friday afternoon mass at St. Joan of Arc Chapel, and Angelo’s Pizza, where they had their first date over a slice of pie. Bernie asked Kathleen out their sophomore year, after an accounting final. In fact, Bernie included Betsy Darr, their accounting professor, in the toast of their wedding. “If not for her, we wouldn’t have met,” Kathleen said. Kathleen and Bernie currently live in Mount Prospect, Ill., where they raise two daughters with the same dating values they saw in each other: respect, goodness to others and religion. The two still visit Real Chili and Joan of Arc Chapel. Kathleen and Bernie celebrated their 27th anniversary on Oct. 6 , 2011.
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Ted Strupp & Marybeth Jacobson
Class of ‘80, ‘81
Ted, 53, majored in journalism. He works at Northwestern Mutual in Wisconsin in the corporate communication department. Marybeth, 52, majored in German and journalism. She freelances for the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
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Dave and Donna Rae Foran
Dave, 74, class of 1959, majored in journalism and is currently retired. Donna Rae, 71, class of 1961, is a lecturer for the Marquette University and Mount Mary College English department.
Donna Rae Skovira didn’t know Dave Foran personally, but she always knew of him. She heard him singing Frank Sinatra in Copus Hall, Marquette University’s College of Journalism building, and even read about him on a public telephone, marked: “This phone belongs to King Dave Foran.” At the end of her freshman year, the junior, Foran, asked Skovira to a party. “He was very much fun, he talked to everybody and made them feel comfortable,” Skovira said. By the middle of her sophomore year, and the end of Foran’s senior year, they were a couple. Four months later, Foran “pinned” Skovira (a visible symbol of the two’s relationship) with a Society of Professional Journalists, Sigma Delta Chi pin. “I was so discouraged,” Skovira said. “What, for the next two weeks?” she asked. “No,” Foran replied. “For the next 60 years.” The two married in her hometown, Cleveland, Ohio. Donna Rae and Dave have five children, live in Glendale, Wis., and celebrated their 51st anniversary on June 11.
Bill and Bernie Janz
Bill, 74, class of 1959, majored in journalism. He is currently retired. Bernie, 75, class of 1960, majored in journalism and minored in English, Latin and psychology. She is also retired.
Bill and Bernie Janz’s first meeting in 1958 can be told in two ways. The “sexy” version: Bernie rubbing her foot against Bill’s leg at a student Thanksgiving dinner. And the “clean” version: Bill asking for Bernie’s phone number during senior year class registration. No matter what story they tell, Bernie and Bill share one love story that is still being told 52 years later. Bill wrote about it in his memoir, which begins and ends with Bernie, he said. The former columnist for the Journal Sentinel fell in love with the 5-foot-3 Bernadette many times: when she was perpetually late to class, when she fell during a snow storm and made a snow angel, when she bought him a gold watch that is in every picture he has ever taken. What did Bernie love about Bill? His honesty, and his height — he can change a light bulb without a ladder, she said with a laugh. Bernie and Bill live in Fredonia, Wis. They have two children and two Australian shepherds.