Rebecca Stephens ’19 and Kyle Ohocinski ’19
“Rebecca is the most remarkable person in my life,” said Kyle. He met Rebecca during 2015 summer orientation of East Stroudsburg University. During orientation he went with the wrong group, “probably because of the overwhelming excitement I had going into college,” explained Kyle. He was later directed to the correct location and was seated with Dr. Beth Sockman where they talked about the digital media technologies major. As time passed, people finally ended up in the room where they were located. The first person that walked through that door was Rebecca Mae Stephens.
“Rebecca was beautiful and had an apprehensive sense about her, whether it was by the way she walked or looked. I still don't know,” said Kyle. “Yet there was a whimsical sense had about her. I just knew I liked her.” They didn't share a word until the group was relocated to Sci-Tech, and on the walk over Kyle made her giggle which was a HUMONGOUS achievement for him. Kyle sat next to Rebecca for the math competency test and he can remember how excited he was but, luck wasn't on his side because Rebecca was left-handed and had to move to the other side of the room. After that Kyle didn't see her again during the orientation.
On the first day of classes, Kyle wanted to arrive early, and as he was walking into the building, Kyle saw her. She was sitting alone on her phone. He kept talking to her as much as he could because he had a huge crush on her.
Over time, Rebecca and Kyle finally started dating and falling in love. They tried to take as many classes as they could together and joined the same clubs. They even worked the same work study job. They created many memories.
“It's the little things that I come to love to reflect on” explained Kyle. “During our freshman year, Rebecca didn't like taking elevators from a natural fear of them. Rebecca and I would walk up and down the stairs to her room on the fifth floor.” Every little trial and tribulation. Rebecca and Kyle went through, and will go through, is worth it.
“Without a doubt, this is one of the best things to come out of East Stroudsburg University. I can't thank the university enough for the education and life it has given me,” said Kyle.
Olivia Sliwinski ’18 and John Bultera ’18
Olivia and John first started talking in September 2017. It all started because John was organizing East Stroudsburg University's Special Olympics, and Olivia was a special education major. Their first time meeting had gone so well, that they started hanging out every day. They had study dates in the library, went to classes together, had their usual Thursday nights at Siamsas on Main Street, adventured the Pocono area and enjoyed cooking dinners together. It did not take long for the two to start officially dating. Olivia was in shock by how much of a gentlemen John was. He basically did not let her lift a finger! John had asked Olivia to be his girlfriend on October 14, 2017. Olivia had called her best friend and sister that same month to tell them she knew she had met the man she was going to marry. Olivia had prayed for a man like John for a long time. The two had fallen quickly in love.
John and Olivia spent all senior year together, graduated together and soon after moved into their first apartment in Maryland. They decided to go to Maryland to get some experience in their first jobs. They had so much fun picking out their new decor and furniture. Olivia had many breakdowns during her first year of teaching, but John had always been there for her and was always her number one supporter. He was there for her emotionally, he cooked dinner every night, cleaned the apartment, did her laundry, and just about everything else. While the two enjoyed their time together in Maryland, they knew they both wanted to come back home to family and friends.
On the last day they shared together in Maryland, John had asked Olivia to marry him. Now, this was not your normal proposal. John asked Olivia to go down by the water near the bay. Sounds normal so far, right? As he got down on one knee on a very hot day, he asked Olivia to marry him as his knee was burning from hot rocks! Olivia quickly said yes, and he then jumped up. He still has a bruise! Olivia was shaking with happiness, excitement, and shock due to the surprise. She couldn't get the words out while she called the first person to tell, crying happy tears instead.
After the year and a half the two spent together, they knew they made the best team and wanted to spend the rest of their lives together. They became best friends and their love grew for each other every day. The two are excited to spend their wedding day together with their loved ones on July 25, 2020.
Larry Hitchcock ’77 and Karen Cicilioni ’77
Larry Hitchcock ’77 and Karen Cicilioni ’77 met when they were both pledging Sigma Pi and Alpha Sigma Alpha in spring 1974 and became an item the following fall semester. They graduated with degrees in physical education and elementary education in May 1977 and married a year later.
After 42 years of marriage, Larry and Karen are still each other’s best friend.
“We are so blessed that our three children and their families live near us in Cincinnati, Ohio,” said Karen.
Jen Hynes ’98 and Steve Hynes ’96
Jen Hynes ’98 attended ESU for her master’s degree starting in 1994 when she moved in with her older brother, Gary Garver, who was also an ESU alumni. Jen had no idea what to expect moving to the Poconos. Thanks to Gary, who was an assistant football coach, she was introduced to Steve "Hynesy" Hynes who had just finished playing for the Warriors and was also an assistant coach. They first met at Floods and have been together ever since. Nothing beats 10 wings and great beers on tap!
One of their first dates was the famous "Pocono Snake and Animal Farm!" Those that know Hynesy know that he is "larger than life" in all aspects of life. Cheerful, encouraging, dedicated and so loving to all that are lucky enough to know him. The ESU football family became their family. The coaches, (starting with Coach Douds) took Jen in like she was one of their own. Jen and Hynesy have so many awesome memories of ESU! After graduation, they lived in East Stroudsburg for a few years and eventually settled in Jen’s hometown of Hershey, Pa., to raise their two boys, Zackaray and Owen.
Zackaray is now a freshman at keeping the tradition going! Jen and Hynesy tease Zackaray that he will meet his future wife there, as well. Jens brother, Gary also met his wife Lisa at ESU, but their love story is for Lisa to tell. Lots of pride to be an ESU couple!
Dr. Richard A. Ruck ’17 and Dr. Kerri Baron Ruck ’99
Dr. Richard A. Ruck ’17 and Dr. Kerri Baron Ruck ’99 didn’t meet at ESU, although they are both ESU alumni. Kerri received her bachelor’s degree, master’s degree and doctoral degree at ESU, and Richard received his doctoral degree at ESU where he is also a faculty member. They have two children and a cat. Richard and Kerri’s youngest child, Victoria, is also attending ESU as an education major. They have been married for almost 20 years and have celebrated Valentine’s Day together as a couple for 23 years this year!
Bradley Swiatkowski '19 and Samantha Washington '17
Brad and Samantha are high school sweethearts turned into college sweethearts. They met in the eighth grade at Swiftwater Intermediate School. Brad and Samantha spent their afternoons on AOL Instant Messenger. They started dating in 2010, the end of their freshman year. On their first date, they went to see Avatar the Last Airbender at the Stroud Mall Movie Theater.
After high school, Samantha decided to attend Northampton Community College, while Brad went straight to ESU. Samantha completed two years at NCC Monroe and decided that she would transfer to ESU to study digital media technology. At the time, Brad was taking a break from college. Samantha dragged Brad along to her sound recording class to be her drummer. After seeing her in the digital media technology program, Brad realized this was the career path he had been seeking. He returned to ESU as a digital media technology major. People didn't always realize Brad and Samantha were a couple. However, a comment was repeated time and again "you two work so well together."
In October 2019, Brad and Samantha started a video production company together and this April they will be celebrating 10 years together.
“It was pretty awesome to learn and grow together at ESU and it has been incredible to begin our business together with the knowledge we learned while at ESU,” said Samantha.
Adrian Williams '12 and Allison Galvin '13
The setting of Adrian and Ally's love story is Linden Hall. The two would claim to be "just friends" for most of their college career. However, they were destined to be together from the first time Adrian welcomed Ally to Linden Hall where Adrian was a front desk worker. During college the two were resident advisors, a part of the Awakening, and active members of the Diversity Committee. They were also participants in a dating game during a campus event for cutest couple and lost! Ally is still sad that she missed out on a $20 gift card to Texas Roadhouse. Their personal growth throughout college is what laid a foundation for their loving relationship. They were was married in 2016 surrounded by their ESU family, many of whom also lived in Linden Hall. Each year they come back for Homecoming and this past year brought along their two toddlers, Norah and Jordan.
Bridget ’14 and Joe Weinman ’13
Bridget Weinman ’14 met her husband Joe Weinman ’13 at Marita’s Cantina on Halloween. He was the DJ and Bridget was trying to win the Halloween contest cash prize. It was love at first sight and even though she didn’t win the cash prize, Bridget won Joe as her husband in September 2016. They are expecting their first child in May!
Cyan Fink ’18 and Rich Spero ’18
Rich Spero ’18 and Cyan Fink ’18, met in Beers Lecture Hall in September 2016. They had a Mythology class at 4 p.m. and the lecture hall was taken over by a meeting that was running late. When the meeting let out, all of the students flooded the hall and found their seats. Cyan had been sitting in the front where there were two seats by themselves, because she had a hard time seeing the front of the room. This was Cyan’s “unassigned” assigned seat. So, imagine her anger when there was a man sitting in her seat! Cyan decided that she would sit right next to him in hopes that he would move. He did not. So, while Rich stole Cyan’s seat, she stole his heart!
They moved in together in May 2017 and commuted from Allentown to ESU until they graduated in December 2018. On May 18, 2019, Cyan and Rich were married with their ESU friends standing next to them!
Mike ’09 and Joanna Carmeci ’08
Mike ’09 and Joanna ’08 met in 2006; she had just transferred to ESU from Long Island, N.Y. As a native from East Stroudsburg, Mike showed her all around campus and the town. Joanna remembers him taking her to get her college ID. She turned 21 that winter and he took her to the Irish pub on Main Street for her first beer! It was the first time in her life living away from home and she knew they had a connection and that was life changing. They stayed together and he moved to Long Island a few years after they had both graduated.
Fast forward to 2020, Mike and Joanna are both proud ESU alumni and will be celebrating their six-year wedding anniversary in April. They are homeowners and parents to two beautiful boys. #ESUtoIDo
Courtney Schmidt ’14 and Richard Regan ’13 love story began at ESU almost seven years to the date! It began on a snowy day at ESU where classes were canceled, and their friends decided to get together for some snow day drinks! They lived in a house right off campus and Ricky showed up at her house. At one point, while they were all playing games and laughing, Courtney remembers looking at Ricky thinking “man, this guy is hilarious I like him.” His personality matched hers and his laugh was contagious. Shortly after, Courtney reached out to Ricky and they’ve been laughing contagiously ever since! Ricky graduated in 2013 and became a cop in New Jersey. Courtney graduated in 2014, moved from Pennsylvania to New Jersey with Ricky and became a fifth-grade math and science teacher. Ricky and Courtney go back to ESU, almost every Homecoming and occasionally drive to East Stroudsburg to get Flood’s amazing chicken cheesesteak! On February 7th, 2020, at a Boston Celtics game, Ricky got down on one knee and proposed! You better believe this ESU couple will be holding up an ESU banner at their wedding expressing their love for the place that brought them together. If it was up to Ricky, they would probably be getting married at Stroud Hall. They are so thankful for ESU and the friends, careers, love, and memories it brought them together!
Amanda (McNulty) Vachris ’14 and James Vachris ’14
Amanda McNulty ’14 and James Vachris’s ’14 love story begins in fall 2010. Jimmy grew up in Wilmington, Del., and Amanda in Schuylkill Haven, Pa. They were both starting their first year at ESU. As fate would have it, they both were assigned to the (old) Hawthorne building not knowing what was in store for the upcoming year. Jimmy resided on the second floor while Amanda was on the sixth. They had mutual friends in the same building and eventually became friends in October. Fast forward to summer 2011, Amanda and James decided that they wanted more than a friendship and become each other’s boyfriend/girlfriend. They spent the next three years exploring East Stroudsburg and making memories together. In 2014, they both graduated with bachelor’s degrees, Jimmy with a science degree and Amanda with a business degree. After graduation it wasn’t long until Amanda would move to Wilmington, Del., to be with Jimmy.
A year went by quickly and Jimmy had planned a trip to New York City for a few days. NYC was one of the places they would go while studying at ESU since it was close driving distance. They would explore Central Park frequently on their trips. Little did Amanda expect that Jimmy would propose at their favorite spot in Central Park in summer 2015. The years flew by after graduation and they got married in 2017 with many of their ESU friends there to them celebrate, some even being in their wedding.
They now live in Hockessin, Del. and recently welcomed their first child, a baby girl. Delaney was born in October of 2019. Jimmy is now a manager at his family business with aspirations of owning it one day, while Amanda is a successful realtor in Del. and Pa. If they did not meet at ESU, it is certain their lives would not be the same. Amanda and James are thankful for the place where they learned their independence, spent countless hours exploring their surroundings, and made memories together at ESU. With the 10th anniversary of their first homecoming approaching, they intend to visit to relive some of those memories that are so dear to them. Amanda and James can’t wait to show their daughter where their mom and dad met one day. It truly is a blessing.
Jack ’67 and Anne Childs
Jack ’67 met Anne, his wife of 50 years this June, when he was a senior at ESSC and she was a freshman at Keystone College. “I took my brother David up to KJC to see his girlfriend. I got ready to leave Bonnie's (Dave's girlfriend) dorm, when she said, ‘Wait, I want you to meet my roomie Annie Vastine.’ At that point, this cute, effervescent girl came running down the hall, bounced upon the hearth of the fireplace (the centerpiece of their dorm), and said, ‘Hi, I'm Anne.”
Don ’56 and Marge Griffith ’59
Don Griffith ’56 and Marge Griffith ’59 have been married 60 years. They are both retired teachers and live in New York state. They enjoy returning to campus for special occasions.
Mike Bidwell '99 and Kimberly Williams-Bidwell '00
Mike Bidwell '99 and Kimberly Williams-Bidwell '00 met in Lenape Hall in 1996 and were close friends for a few years. What started out as casual conversations and occasional nights out with friends, blossomed into true love. Mike and Kim were married in 2002, surrounded by their closest friends from ESU. They have two boys, Evan (15) and Owen (11). Mike and Kim have a soft spot for ESU and Lenape Hall; it's where it all began!
Kelly (Hatfield) Landherr ’01 and Todd Landherr ’03
Todd ’03 and Kelly ’01 met in the spring of 2001 at a fraternity event that Kelly’s sorority, Sigma Sigma Sigma, was having with Todd’s fraternity, Kappa Delta Rho (KDR). At the time Kelly specifically remembers her roommate forcing her to go out that night to the KDR fraternity. Lucky for Kelly, because she was fortunate enough to meet Todd. Kelly was getting ready to graduate and never expected to meet someone that I would end up marrying five years later. Fast forward... there future took them to Philadelphia for 15 years where they started a family (twin eight-year-old) and professionally they are doing well. Recently Todd and Kelly relocated to Chester County to live in the community where she grew up. Life is good!
Ian Brown ’18 and Liz Roberts ’18
Ian Brown ’18 and Liz Roberts ’18 met during the first couple weeks of their freshman year in the basement of Shawnee Hall when he was playing pool with his roommates. It didn’t take long for them to become inseparable. “Having someone to go through college with was such a wonderful thing” said Liz. Ian and Liz were able to encourage each other and accomplish some pretty cool things.
They had a radio show on 90.3 WESS together called Soundcheck, and Ian became Station Manager of WESS their Senior year. Liz was the president of CAB their junior and senior years and he was the concert chair.
After graduating in May of 2018, both with degrees in Communication, they moved to the Philadelphia area, and now live with their dog Nico.