GROSSMONT COLLEGE — How do couples meet? Almost every couple has a story they will happily tell if you ask them about it. Some met at bars while others were introduced by friends, and many met while going to college. On Friday, February 10, Grossmont held a pre-Valentine’s day dessert reception at the Health Science complex to celebrate the couples who met on the college campus over the last five decades.

The night was a huge hit for the 40 couples who were able to attend. It was a night filled with new friendships being formed and many others rekindled. A fine dessert table featuring chocolate and pastries was laid out for those with a sweet tooth, and live love songs were performed by vocalist Rachel Drexler accompanied by Steve Baker, Grossmont’s Dean of Arts, Languages & Communication, and fellow musicians James Morton and Doug Booth. The musical theme was love songs from the past 50 years.

Rick Griffin, the public information officer of Grossmont College, who met his own wife Jan here, collected some of the stories from other couples:   Wilfrid (Bill) Hopwood met Carla Cleeton while attending a bowling class in 1987 .  Married in 1989, they have three children–one of whom also attended Grossmont.  Chris Crawford met Randy Lee in a beginning volleyball class.  He continued with intramural games, and she became a cheerleader.  Now they’ve been married 30 years and have three children, one also attending Grossmont.  “You never know,” says his mother, “He may meet his future wife there too.”

Pauline Levikow spotted Tony Garcia in a Literature class but “it took two months for my future husband to talk to me.”  Then they spent an hour at lunch together and “in that short time I knew he was the one.”  That was 40 years ago, with two children and two grandchildren later.  “Grossmont College is part of our family history,” says Pauline.

Kate and Chad O’Donnell met after Chad started coughing up blood after a game that won him honors as Football Conference Defensive Player of the Week.  He went to the on-site EMT where he ignored his malady long enough to ask the emergency medical technician for a date on his birthday. She agreed to go, only if he agreed to go to the hospital. He didn’t go to the hospital and she didn’t go on the date.  But they saw each other a couple months down the road while taking summer classes at Grossmont and “from then on the love stuck,” Kate said.

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Sanders is a Media Comm 199 student.  [email protected]