SUNY Broome Love Stories

In honor of Valentine’s Day, here are some of our favorite love stories that all began right here on campus!

The Couple: Carla & David 

Their SUNY Broome Love Story: “During the summer of 1986, I was hired as a graduate intern for the Office of Institutional Research. The Director decided to locate me in an allegedly empty office in the LAD. Little did I know that that office was intended for the Math Lab Coordinator, Dave Michalak. I thought that I had squatter’s rights, and soon my internship turned into a two-year appointment. Then, one day in August, I found Dave had moved into the office, and my stuff had been moved to one side! And not only was Dave there, but because Dave coached both baseball and hockey, so were some of BCC’s finest athletes! Being a new employee and needing to concentrate on my work, I was a bit frustrated. Our office was a constant revolving door of someone needing something from Dave. In order to function, we drew our own “Mason-Dixon line” in the office and kept to our “corners.” A few months later, Dave asked me to lunch. I, being smart, never turned down a free lunch. We discovered that we had more in common than we thought, and the rest is history!”

Carla Sturchio Michalak & David Michalak (PE  ’75)

 

The Couple: Gabby & Mike 

Their SUNY Broome Love Story: We were both international students from Mexico spending one semester abroad at SUNY Broome in the Summer of 2013. Love came softly.  We were friends first, but by living together in a different country,  we got to know each other very well.  We fell in love, and now we have been married for 5 years!

Gaby & Mike Carrillo

 

The Couple: Denise & Tony

Their SUNY Broome Love Story: “In 1972, Tony and I left the lecture hall at the same time and began to chat about the test we just took. He followed me to my locker, where I finally got to look at his beautiful, brown eyes. Fireworks went off. My first thought was ‘I’m going to marry him!’ We talked more and then we had to get to class. We never exchanged last names or numbers! A month later, my friend set up a blind date for me. It was Tony! Meant to be! We were married for 46 years!”

Denise Colwell Lenzo (LA ’72) & Anthony Lenzo (LA ’72)

 

The Couple: Julia & Samuel

Their SUNY Broome Love Story: “Technically, Samuel Leslie and I never met while we were students at SUNY Broome. Somewhat surprising, given we were both there earning degrees in the healthcare field (I was getting a Nursing Degree, he was becoming a Paramedic), and we even attended the same graduation ceremony in May 2023. But it was actually ten days after graduation that simply by chance we happened to connect online. Having both lived in the area our whole lives and taken classes at SUNY Broome at the same time, we quickly acknowledged a sense of general familiarity with one another, stemming from a likelihood that we had seen each other in passing around campus and in the community before such interactions gained any significance to us. 

My father even recalled then-stranger Sam’s name being spoken aloud at graduation, as he was notably the only graduate in his program who attended. It turned out that I had even had encounters with Sam’s mother, Erin K. O’Hara-Leslie, Chairperson of Health Studies and Assistant to the Dean, months before we got together as well. 

Then, perhaps a week after Sam and I began talking, I opened a Campus Buzz article from SUNY Broome and found myself looking at a picture of his face, followed by a quote attributed to him which read; “My mom was my professor for one class, and I was really hoping that some nepotism would take place, but it didn’t… Today was great and it was so special to celebrate with my mom.” Sam had received his diploma from his mother and the photo was of the two of them, smiling, dressed in regalia from the same graduation ceremony I had also attended. 

I flew to our text conversation, and promptly notified Sam –both of his newfound internet fame (and the immortalization of his joke about receiving special treatment)– and our shared graduation. This revelation sparked further conversations that have since matured into an unbreakable bond. I was charmed by the sense of humor; here was a man who excelled in his educational pursuits of his own accord, and expressed genuine gratitude for the opportunities that got him to graduation, but still saw fit to publicly joke (about nepotism), just to keep the mood light and lively. Smart, conscientious… but also a little goofy! I think seeing that article was one of the first times I realized I wanted us to be together forever. 

Thanks to our shared interests and experiences within SUNY Broome and beyond, we decided “together forever” sounded pretty good, and we are thrilled to report that we are getting married this August! From humble beginnings as Hornets to a hopeful future “in sickness and in health”(care 😉), our story is proof that while you never know how things will turn out, YOUR happily ever after could begin right here at Broome!

Julia Langton (RN ‘23) & Samuel McLean Leslie EMT ‘23)

 

The Couple: Carly & Pat 

Their SUNY Broome Love Story: We were first in a general psychology class together in 2012, but didn’t start talking until three years later when, by maybe some act of fate, we were placed in the same class again for abnormal psychology. The moment that I saw him and recognized him from three years prior, I felt a “this is meant to be” feeling. And I guess that it was!  Nine years later we are still together, with a kid and three dogs! So for anyone who wants to believe in “love at first sight,” I can attest that it happened to me at SUNY Broome!

Carly Forbes & Pat Harding