Alumni Valentines 2020

graphic of GW campus with hearts in the sky

Could Cupid be hiding in Foggy Bottom? From Thurston Hall romances to classmates turned couples, alumni share how GW played a part in their love stories.


Lucia Orejarena, ESIA BA ’14 & Yaacov (Coby) Wittman, CCAS BS ’14Lucia and Yaacov wedding photo

“We met in Thurston Hall in 2010 and became close friends before starting to date a year later. We stayed in DC after college and got engaged here in 2018, and married in DC just a few blocks from campus at Decatur House in 2019! Our wedding was full of GW alumni (mostly from floor two of Thurston!), including Coby’s mom, who had also been a Thurston resident back in the day.” –Lucia


family photo of nini and brett with three toddler sons outsideNini Khozeimeh, SEAS BS ’02, SMHS MD ’06 & Brett Holt, SMHS MD ‘06

“I was no stranger to the GW Campus, going there for undergrad, as did both my parents and sister. But Brett was new to the DC area and we met on the first day of medical school orientation. Our friendship bloomed into love. We both stayed for residency at GW in general surgery and urology. Residency brought marriage and our first son. Now we are a thriving family of 5!” –Nini


Raquel Jones, ESIA BA ’18 & Ji Yong Shin, GWSB BAccy ‘19Wedding photo of Raquel and Ji Yong sitting on a bench and holding flowers

“We met in 2015 during my sophomore year of college at a party near campus. Soon after that, we began dating. At the end of that school year, he planned to take a two-year break from college to fulfill his mandatory military service as a citizen of South Korea. Although we had been dating for less a year, we decided we liked each other enough to try long distance dating. Despite the 14-hour time difference and many communication difficulties imposed by his military duties, we stayed together through it all. I was even able to study abroad in Korea for a semester, where I was finally able to see him in person. The year after he returned to the States to complete his senior year of college, he proposed to me and we got married last summer. We are both thankful to our alma mater for aligning the stars in order for us to meet.” –Raquel 


Alex and Richie at graduation wearing robesAlex Smith, CCAS BA ‘10 & Richie Smith, GWSB BBA ‘10

“We met at a sorority/fraternity mixer in 2009, our senior year. Even though we were nearing the end of school, we hit it off, and began to date. We spent our first Valentine’s Day together ice skating at the National Sculpture Garden and our families met each other at graduation on the Mall. Since then, we moved to Boston where our relationship grew. In 2015, we returned to the National Sculpture Garden and Richie proposed. We got married in Boston in 2016 and in 2019, we welcomed our daughter, Ruby!” –Alex

 


Conn Carroll, CCAS BA ’00 & Wendi Carroll, CCAS BA ’00, GSEHD MA ’02 Vintage photo of Conn and Wendi smiling in a dorm room at GW

“Wendi and I were neighbors freshman year (Thurston Hall 607 and 609 respectively), but I didn’t get up the courage to ask her out until around October sophomore year (the asking out took place in the basement laundry room of JBKO). By Valentine’s Day we had been dating for about four months, but I had yet to cook her dinner. I knew she liked fish, so I planned to roast some salmon, red potatoes, and these beautiful red, yellow, orange, and red peppers that I thought would look great on the plate. After securing some Chardonnay from Tokay Liquors, I thought I was all set. I picked her up from JBKO with a dozen red roses in hand and walked her back over to my apartment where we chatted and drank wine while I cooked. When it came to eat, she devoured the salmon and the potatoes but the peppers sat on her plate completely untouched. She was effusive about what she did eat but didn’t say a word about the conspicuously untouched peppers. Finally, I asked if there was anything wrong with them and she said that while they looked very pretty, peppers were unkind to her stomach and she never eats them. Over 20 years, a marriage, and three kids later, we are still happily together – and I haven’t bought a single pepper since.” –Conn


Group photo of Jillian, Rob and friends at daughter's bat mitzvahJillian Dubman, ESIA BA ’99 & Rob Dubman, GWSB BBA ’99

“We technically met in Thurston Hall during Colonial Inauguration, but didn’t realize it until we were dating during our senior year. We were in an English class first semester freshman-year, and Rob joined a fraternity where we had mutual friends, so we became friends. During sophomore year, we went as friends to his fraternity semi-formal and had a great time, but we both ended up dating other people afterward. We got to know each other via email while I was studying abroad in France during spring of junior year, which let the relationship grow. When I got back to DC for graduation weekend, on our first official date, Rob asked me to visit him in California that summer. We dated all summer long-distance and senior year, and that was when we spoke to a mutual friend who mentioned we had lived next door to each other during CI! We got married in May 2001, have two amazing kids (Maya 13, Parker 10), and will celebrate our 20th anniversary next year. Our 20th college reunion was in 2019, so we had a mini-reunion at our daughter’s bat mitzvah in April 2019 with some of our GW friends, and our families got to spend time together. We continue to remain connected to a lot of our friends and find new connections to GW grads all the time!” –Jillian


Danielle (Rubin) Keinan CCAS BA ’09 & Omer Keinan, GWSB BBA ’08Omer on one knee proposing to Danielle in University Yard

“Omer and I met in the spring of 2006 through mutual friends. During our time together at GW, we maintained a close friendship; however, our relationship did not blossom until a few years after graduation. The years after GW brought many highs and lows, but there was always something special that drew us back together. While it took a bit longer than Omer would have liked, we finally ended up realizing our true feelings for each other in fall 2013. Once we finally started dating, there wasn’t much doubt about being on the path to marriage. About a year later, the conversation started to get serious and Omer began to plan the perfect way to propose. The first thought that came to his mind was to add yet another memory together at GW. With help from my parents and friends, Omer managed to convince me I was coming down to DC for a girls weekend at the spa while he was spending a weekend away. Once I arrived in DC, a friend greeted me at the airport and handed me the first clue of a scavenger hunt designed to take me down memory lane leading up to a proposal. After a few stops at some GW landmarks and the obligatory salon and manicure stop, I was finally directed towards my graduation brick in University Yard. There, Omer was waiting and asked me to spend the rest of our lives together. Fifteen years after first meeting on campus, we got married in July 2016, now have a 2 year old son and another baby on the way – both hopefully future Colonials!” – Danielle

 

Did you fall in love at GW? Submit your alumni love story and we may feature you on social media this month. 

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