While many college seniors are looking for ways to purchase a new car or looking for a place to live post graduation, a select few at McDaniel College are looking for ways to finance their weddings.
As another academic year here on the hill comes to a close, the class of 2012 prepares to venture into the world with their newly obtained degrees. Some seniors are going straight into the workforce while others are going onto graduate school to acquire more advanced degrees. While most graduates do this alone, a very few number of seniors this year are moving onto the next phase of their life’s with their significant others.
Edward Ezekiel and Wendy “Farley” Howe, who are in Alpha Sigma Phi and Phi Mu respectively, met in a western world art class their freshman year. Although they
didn’t start dating until the end of their freshman year, they became friends from the very first day.
Junior Year, they studied abroad in Costa Rica together, which Ezekiel recalls as providing some of his fondest memories with Farley.
That winter, the two spent time together skiing with Howe’s family which provided some of her favorite memories. Watching Ezekiel learn to ski proved to be extremely entertaining considering she had been skiing since long before she was ten years old.
Whilst spending time with Howe’s family, Ezekiel took the initiative and asked her parents if he could propose. After a successful answer, one month later on February 7th, 2011 Ed stated “I can’t wait another day, will you marry me?”
Now, nearly a year and a half later, the two are preparing to graduate. Ezekiel is double majoring in Environmental Policy and Political Science and Howe is double majoring in Sociology and Spanish. They are planning marry this June at Howe’s hometown church in Memphis, TN by Howe’s own mother, as her mother currently serves as one of the pastors.
Following the wedding, the two are looking forward to a romantic honeymoon on Jumby Bay, which is a private island located off the coast of Antigua in the Caribbean. This fall, they will be both attending Emory Law School in Atlanta, Georgia where they both hope to become lawyers.
Senior Nathan Wuertenberg is preparing to graduate and also to get married to his long-time girlfriend Jeneice Shaw. Shaw graduated from McDaniel last year with a double major in Psychology and Gender Studies. The two met during his freshman year and her sophomore year of high school and have been together since then.
Even amidst the craziness of a college student’s life, the two kept close together and some of Wuertenberg’s finest memories are of the two taking walks together.
“It was always really peaceful, at least on the weeknights,” said Wuertenberg.
Once graduated, the two are planning on getting married at Shaw’s childhood church in Hancock, Maryland. Coincidentally, the pastors who are going to be conducting the ceremony are the same ones who married her parents back in the day.
Next fall, Wuertenberg is going to be attending a Masters in History program at Ball State University in Muncie, Indiana, which is where Shaw is currently working on obtaining her Masters in Counseling Psychology.
Seniors Mitch Balella and Carrisa Grove are finally getting married after being together since their junior year of high school. The two met and instantly hit it off from day one. The two came to McDaniel together in fall of 2009 and are now preparing to graduate together.
Grove, who is currently a member of the Phi Mu Sorority at McDaniel, says one of her favorite memories of her college career is attending formal several years in a row.
“It was just fun to hang out with friends and have him around,” said Grove.
Balella’s favorite memories are on the opposite end of the spectrum; having her support him at his Green Terror basketball games.
After graduation, the two are planning on attending graduate school at Hood College in Frederick, Maryland so that Mitch can obtain his masters degree in Business Administration and Grove can get her masters in Environmental Biology.
Balella chose a very non-traditional way of proposing to his girlfriend, during the summer before their senior year. Grove was pulled over due to a “broken taillight.” However, the officer was actually a friend of Balella’s and when the officer requested she get of the car, Balella was there on one knee, ready to pop the question.
This year, on August 10th, 2012, nearly a year after he proposed, the two are getting married at Stone Manor Country Club located in Middletown, MD. They are both looking forward to their outdoor wedding.
Last but certainly not least, seniors Priyanka Sangupta and Seth Marple are the most recent to-be couple here at McDaniel. Seth proposed on February 29th, 2012 to Sangupta during their leap year dinner, which was nearly three years after they started dating.
Sangupta says she “kind of knew it was coming” because they had been talking about it beforehand. However ,she was still taken aback by his actions and considers his proposal a “momentous step in their relationship.”
The two met during their freshman year in their Great Works class; they started hanging out more and more and working on assignments and such. They were considered friends for about six months before they officially started dating, after they discovered they had a lot more then they originally thought in common.
Post graduation, when Marple will receive a degree in both English and Computer Science and Sangupta will get hers in English, Marple will be working in Laurel, Maryland which is located around twenty minutes from Sangupta. She says she will be living at home with her family; however, she’ll be spending much of her time with Seth.
The two are planning to get married May of 2013.
“We’ve made some wedding plans, but I’m waiting until after graduation to get into full planning mode” says Sangupta. They’ve also talked of where they want to go on their honeymoon; although nothing is set, they’re sure it’s going to be somewhere tropical.
Although these are the only seniors who have confirmed their engagements to the Free Press, there are most certainly others who have similar plans, and we wish them all the best of luck.
