Love brought us here together

Chances are you or someone you know has a memorable story of meeting their spouse at Dayton. During a marriage vow renewal ceremony held during Reunion Weekend, UD’s Chapel of the Immaculate Conception is filled with married couples of fellow Flyers.

The service opened with the hymn “Love Has Brought Us Here Together,” sharing the message from 1 Corinthians that would be shared later in the ceremony: “love is patient, love is kind.”

Father James Fitz, S.M. ’68, offered a reflection to the couples focusing on love and forgiveness in marriages.

Trevor Rosenbaum ’16 and Katie Welsh ’15 met when they were resident assistants in Marycrest; they married in 2016.

“I went through RCIA [Catholic rite of initiation] while in my undergrad with the support of Katie, so we went through a lot of big Catholic moments together,” said Rosenbaum.

“We have two young boys, and we can only hope they’re Flyers some day!” said Walsh.

Tom Heeney ’70 and Pat Plaza Heeney ’70 will be celebrating 52 years together in September. They met at a party hosted by a mutual friend during the start of their last trimester of senior year.

“To think we came so close to never meeting,” recalled Pat Heeney.

Tom Heeney walked her home at the end of the night and gave her his tie to be sure he could see her again.

“We still have that tie,” he said. “It’s framed in our house with the words ‘The Start of Something Big’ underneath.”

“It’s great being married to someone who went to Dayton,” she said. “We have a lot of fond memories we can share with each other that are unique compared to other couples.”

To other couples, Tom Heeney recommends, “Keep calm, forgive each other and have fun.”

At the end of the ceremony, Father Jim encouraged the couples to continue their journey of a faithful “yes,” leading with love for one another.

Photographs by Sylvia Stahl '18