Merrimack Marriages
“Since love grows within you, so beauty grows. For love is the beauty of the soul.” St. Augustine
This webpage is dedicated to couples who both graduated from Merrimack College.
Click here to view photos from 2008.
Click here to view photos from 2009.
Please join us on February 13, 2010 for this year's Annual Alumni Valentine's Day Celebration. Click here for more information and to register.
SEND US YOUR STORY!
Send us your story! We will post them on this webpage.
E-mail your love story to kathleen.sthilaire@merrimack.edu
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STORIES FROM 2010
Nancy (Redmond) Deshaies '69 and Frank Deshaies '67
We met at an SBK fraternity party when I was a sophomore and Frank was a senior. We were married in 1968, and our wedding party included my roommate Caroline (Parsons) Gilmore '69 as Maid of Honor and her future husband, Luke Gilmore '68 (also in SBK) as an usher.
We remain the best of friends and frequently get to see them on the Cape where we now live, as well as my other roommate MariAnn (McElroy) Ventimiglia '69 and her husband, SBK brother Sebastian Ventimiglia '69. Three Merrimack couples, all still married--41 years for us, 40 for the Gilmores, and 37 for the Ventimiglias. We're lucky to share great memories of Merrimack and got to meet not only our spouses, but to make lifelong friends! (Photo, Left to right: Mari, Seb, Caroline, Luke, Nancy, and Frank)
Beth Huntley Cole '67
Kathy Connolly '66 and I were close friends at Merrimack. After graduation, Kathy became a Naval Officer. While stationed in VA, she met her fiance, a Naval Aviator. She asked me to be her maid of honor. At her wedding in St. Petersburg, FL in July 1971, I met one of the ushers, Peter Cole, a Seattle native. Pete, a Naval Aviator, was in the same squadron with her husband in FL. At the time, I was living in Springfield, MA. We exchanged several phone calls, letters, spent one long weekend visit in October in Lawrence where he met my parents. He drove north to visit Thanksgiving week before reassignment to California and proposed the evening he arrived from Florida! We were married the following year, October 21, 1972 at Collegiate Church of Christ the Teacher. Diane Jolie '67 was one of our bridesmaids, and Professor St. Germain and Professor Warren attended. The then Rev. Robert M. Wesson, OSA '56 officiated. His parents, Charles and Helen Wesson introduced mine to each other. They were also in attendance.
STORIES FROM 2008
Edward Bowen ’02 and Jennifer (Rinsland) Bowen ‘02
Edward Bowen ‘02 and Jennifer (Rinsland) Bowen ’02 were married in a beautiful outdoor ceremony, on August 11, 2007 at The Sullivan House on Block Island. They enjoyed a weekend of celebrations with their family and close friends.
The couple has remained close to many of their friends from their years at Merrimack, and they were honored that 13 of their friends from Merrimack made the trip to Block Island to celebrate such a special time in their lives with them! They also know that their friends are thankful for the weekend’s introduction to Captain Nick, delicious cupcakes, a moped ticket, a crazy Irish wedding crasher (Dulla) and many other new, ummmm memories to add to the others.
Eddie and Jen met at Merrimack in the fall of 1998 when they were both freshman. They started dating during the fall of 1999. They are so thankful for all of the friendships that they made and all of the things that they experienced during their four years at Merrimack. Most of all they are thankful for their relationship which started at Merrimack and continues to grow stronger with each passing year.
Eddie and Jen live in Chicago and are excited to welcome their first child in 2008.
Kathleen (O'Connor) Potter ’77 and a story of her parents Anne (Kenney) O’Connor ’53 & Patrick O'Connor
My husband Tim and I were married at the Collegiate Church on October 19, 1985. Tim and I met long after I graduated from Merrimack College in 1977. However, I would not be breathing on this earth and I would never have met Tim, if it were not for Merrimack College. The story of my life begins at Merrimack. My parents, Anne (Kenney) and Patrick O'Connor, met at Merrimack College in September of 1951. My mother transferred from Emmanuel College to Merrimack when Merrimack became co-ed. My father, a WW II veteran, came to Merrimack in 1953, after leaving the Augustinian Seminary on Staten Island, when he and the Augustinian fathers realized that the priesthood was not his destiny. Their first date was orchestrated by my grandmother Gertrude Kenney (who worked at Merrimack College as a secretary for twenty years). My Grandmother thought that my father was quite a catch and she "encouraged" my mother to ask him to the Sadie Hawkins Dance. My mother followed my grandmother's advice and Anne and Pat became a couple. My mother graduated from Merrimack in 1953, the first woman to graduate from Merrimack, with a Bachelor's Degree in English. My parents were married in 1954 at St. Augustine’s Church in Andover. The wedding was presided over by Fr. Flaherty, who was my mother's favorite professor. All my life I heard stories about Merrimack College, I felt as though I knew Fr. Flaherty and Professor St. Germain (who I later was privileged to have as a teacher - and to whom, no matter how hard I tried to distinguish myself, I was always known as Pat's daughter).
Mary McAdam Feury’78 & John Feury ‘77
My husband (John Feury) and I met at Merrimack. We were there during the years that Father Joe Calderone was there. John graduated in 1977, and I graduated in 1978. Father Joe married us in June of 1978. We have two sons, Sean and Ryan, ages 23 and 20. We will celebrate our 30th wedding anniversary this coming June.
We have many fond memories from our days in North Andover. In fact we get together regularly with friends from Merrimack. This past weekend we met three Merrimack friends for dinner in Philadelphia (Mary Connolly Ledwith, Judy Giordano Terroni and Steve "Larry" Terroni). Last fall John met with several Merrimack alumni for their annual golf weekend (Larry Terroni, Joe Capone, Tim McKinney, Neil Magner, Mark Cox and Pat Ryan). I also meet with a group of Merrimack women. We are now planning our next weekend together (Dee George Silva, Rose Shea Coleman, Allison Ulrey Hazell, Marie Sottile Zorn, Sally LeHane Murphy, Kathy Griffin Hogan, Mary Connolly Ledwith, Judy Giordano Terroni, Jane Darveau Claire, Joan DeNisco Looby and Coleen Cooke Stewart). We feel very fortunate to have life-long friendships that began at Merrimack College. Many of our children are friends and get together without us!
One of John's fondest memory at Merrimack involves intramural hockey. He coached a team that included Father Joe Calderone. As I remember, he wore bright orange skates. His line was called the "God Squad!"
Ben Guzzone ’63 & Lucille (Bova) Guzzone ‘63
Ben Guzzone was a basketball player for the Warriors. Lucille Bova was a cheerleader. Both were members of the class of '63. They dated off and on in their sophomore year and became a solid team by the time they were seniors. They married after graduation. They had three children and now have eight grand children. They have been living in Florida since 1964.
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STORIES FROM 2007
Brian Harris '96 & Kristen (Marino) Harris '96
Brian and Kristen were married on June 27, 1999 in the Collegiate Church. Father Joe Farrell performed the wedding mass. Kristen and Brian met Freshman year during a study group for their History Class. They began dating September of their Sophmore year which was 1992. The rest is history...
Bruce Round ’84 & Kimberlee (Morse) Round ‘86
Bruce and Kim celebrated their twenty year wedding anniversary last November. They were married in 1986 at the Collegiate Church of Christ the Teacher and live a few miles down the road from the Merrimack campus. What began as a glance across the cafeteria has culminated in many happy years together, as well as two wonderful sons, Jeffrey, 15, and Christopher, 18, who is off to college himself next fall!
Cheri (Adams) LaMonica '97 & Paul LaMonica '96
Cheri Adams and Paul LaMonica met at Merrimack during Cheri's Sophomore year. They met through a mutual friend named Tony Silva. Paul graduated in 1996 and Cheri graduated in 1997. They then got engaged and were married on May 22, 1999 at The Christ the Teacher Collegiate Church. It was a beautiful day celebrated by Father Joe Farrell and Father Kevin Dwyer. Cheri and Paul share many great memories together from Merrimack College!!
Arthur Cogan '96 & Cynthia (Joudrey) Cogan '95
Arthur and Cynthia met in the Civil Engineering program. They were married on January 18, 1998 in Collegiate Church. Arthur and Cynthia even had wedding photos taken on the Mosley truss bridge outside of Mendel!
Karen (Rapp) Randall '98 & Michael Randall '98
Karen (Rapp) and Michael Randall, both in the Class of ‘98, were married in the Collegiate Church on October 28 of 2000. The marriage was celebrated by Father Joe Farrell and Father Scott Ness, and witnessed by many Merrimack friends and family. Mike and Karen met as freshmen in the Fall of ’94 in Ash Centre, where they both lived. Their first date was to Bertucci’s, followed by a viewing of “The Sandlot” back in the residence hall. After Mike quoted the movie line for line, Karen said “we’d be better off as friends.” They’ve been happily married for 6 years!
Joanne (Prunier) Green '73 & John "Pumpsie" Green '71
Joanne Prunier Green '73 and John "Pumpsie" Green '71 were married in the Collegiate Chapel on July 29,1973. The legendary Dean of Students, Fr. Bill Murray (recently deceased) con-celebrated our wedding. Joanne (from Worcester by way of Marian HS) and John (from Lynn by way of St.Mary's Boys HS) met during Joanne's Freshman year. Her roommate Jean Barbsas accepted John's invitation to the SBK fraternity party because Joanne was in the library studying like all good Biology majors in those days!
They double dated on their first (and almost last date) with Jim Greeley (Merrimack's Director of Career Services),who was and remains one of our best friends. It was Jim who during a beer drinking session at the old Bob Whites restaurant in North Andover,named our future children Shannon, Shaun and Bryan "2003".
Guests at our wedding were a number of old SBK fraternity and Class of 71 and 73 grads. Joanne still meets her group of close friends from Merrimack once a month for dinner as do I. The dinner rules are that the women cannot choose the same restaurant as the guys and conversations about anything that can be held against them after dinner are forgotten!! In other words like Las Vegas,"what happens at dinner stays in the restaurant! For our first ten years together we moved around the country. We settled in Boxford in 1983 in a home nearby the famous "Boxford Ball" playing fields where the students of that era enjoyed the outdoors with their favorite beverage in hand. As students, we lived through the most turbulent times of unrest on college campuses during the Viet Nam war. Our Merrimack campus became a model for political discourse during the Presidency of Fr.Ahern. Our Merrimack hockey team were a perennial Division 2 powerhouse and intramural sports like football,softball and basketball were enjoyed by hundreds of students.
Timothy Knittel '00 & Martha (Rossi) Knittel '00
Timothy and Martha, both class of 2000, were married on July 1, 2000 in the Collegiate Church. They met in 1996 in their Freshman Chemistry Class. Valentine’s Day will be their 10th anniversary of being a couple too!
Pat Durante '92 & Bonnie (Watson) Durante '92
Pat and Bonnie Durante (both class of 1992) were married on April 27, 1997 in the Collegiate Church of Christ the Teacher. Their reception was at the Castleton in Windham, NH.
"Bonnie and I met at Merrimack when I was a sophomore and she was a freshman. I'll never forget the first time I noticed her. She stood up to a Professor in front of a lecture hall full of students (in the McQuade auditorium) and I thought - wow - this young lady is courageous (and beautiful too)! Although, we didn't date while at Merrimack, we were very close friends. We shared some laughs at "Shear Madness" in downtown Boston while I was on assignment for the school newspaper. We spent time together whenever we could in the Warrior's Den and in the computer labs in McQuade. I taught Bonnie to play a few songs on guitar and generally followed her around like a puppy dog. It wasn't until a couple of years after graduation that Bonnie and I began to date. Bonnie came across her guitar and remembered me from our days at Merrimack. She called me out of the blue and we started to hang out again. One day, I told her - "you know what I think? I think we should go on a REAL date!" And the rest is history. We chose Merrimack for our wedding ceremony as it seemed appropriate to celebrate our big day on the very campus where we met and became friends. Since then we've had 3 wonderful children (Michael is 8, David is 6, and Bonnie Rose is 4). We hope and pray that they will grow up to find the kind of love and respect that Bonnie and I have been lucky enough to share together. This year, we are celebrating our 10th wedding anniversary by renewing our vows at Immaculate Conception in Newburyport, MA."
Larry Murray '65 & Anne (Twomey) Murray '65
Larry Murray and Anne (Twomey) of the Class of 1965 started dating during their sophomore year at Merrimack. They were married on July 8th, 1967 at the Immaculate Conception Church in Newburyport. Fr. Paul T. Kamide OSA was the celebrant. Joan Kathleen Viskovich ('65) was the Maid of Honor.
Timothy Smith '98 & Jessica (Burgess) Smith '00
Tim and Jess wed in the Collegiate Church on October 6, 2001. The wedding was officiated by Fr. Joe Farrell with Fr. Scott Ness and many alumni friends from the Concert Choir providing the beautiful music. Tim and Jess met when Tim was an Alumni Advisor on an Alternative Spring Break trip to Reserve, Louisiana in 1999. They started dating immediately after returning from the trip, and their first "date" was attending the 9pm student Sunday Mass together in the Collegiate Church! 2 beautiful daughters later and one baby on the way, they're sure grateful for those good ol' Alternative Spring Break trips....
John Pyliotis '01 & Elizabeth (Pyliotis) Pendleton '02
John and Elizabeth were married on October 7, 2006 at the Annunciation Greek Orthodox Cathedral in Boston. Their reception was held at the Sheraton Hotel in Braintree. They had 14 Merrimack Alumni at the wedding -7 Alumni were actually in the wedding party! John and Beth are thankful for the opportunities that Merrimack has provided and most of all for bringing them together.
Bob Alconada ’93 & Laurie (Kinsella) Alconada ’95
Bob and Laurie were married on September 21, 1996 at St. Anthony’s Church in Revere. Although the couple was high school sweet hearts, their love for one another matured and grew strong while at Merrimack. Bob and Laurie had many joyous moments at Merrimack, especially when they became engaged in Laurie’s senior year. The first ten years of marriage were great and Bob and Laurie are looking forward to the rest of their lives with each other.
Parker M Willard Jr. '00 & Debra (Christenson) Willard '00
"We met on a M.O.R.E. Retreat in the fall of 1998. She was on her first Retreat; I was on as a M.O.R.E. Council Member and on my third and final retreat. We spent all night together, just talking about our lives and our families. Something just “clicked” for both of us. Our first “date” was “holding hands” at the Sunday night Mass, when we returned from the retreat. We were engaged the following fall and we married at Christ the Teacher on September 29th of 2001. (Three years and 1 day after our "date", and at the same location!). Our Mass was performed by Father Joe Farrell, along with Father Scott Ness and Sister Elaine Policari, as well as alumni and friends. Father Joe presided over our Retreat in 1998, so it was only fitting that he performed Wedding Mass. Five+ years later, we still spend all night, on occasion, just talking about "our life" and "our family"."