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On this Valentine's Day 2026, we celebrate BW's more than 2,000 alumni couples with another round of their love stories. Happy Valentine's Day!
Lynn McNiven Centa '75 and Bob Centa '74 found both a home away from home and each other at Baldwin Wallace, forming friendships and a partnership that have lasted more than 50 years.
Bob first noticed Lynn at a local hangout bar on a Thursday night. Bob was a junior ATO from Euclid, Ohio, playing football under the late, great Lee Tressel, while Lynn was a sophomore Delta Zeta from Mamaroneck, New York, competing on the BW tennis team.
"It took him a year to ask me out to his ATO fraternity party," Lynn recalls.
After graduating, both built successful careers on Wall Street, crediting BW's strong business education for opening doors. Bob was the only member of his class to land a Wall Street job, and Lynn was the only woman in hers.
Now married, the Centas continue to enjoy a life built on shared memories.
"Our first date is still going on 49 years, with three boys and two grandchildren," says Lynn.
Their connection to BW remains strong through reunions, campus events and enduring friendships.
"We can proudly say we have close friends going back 50 years," says Lynn. "Friends that mean the world to us. As a bonus, the ATOs have ongoing reunion parties where we laugh, tell the same stories and remember those we have lost."
Grateful for the community that shaped their lives, they continue to support BW, believing in paying kindness forward and in the quality of a BW education.
"Baldwin Wallace University will pass on that commitment to continue its educational excellence and strengthen its responsibilities and relationships to whomever walks through their doors," says Lynn. "We will be forever grateful and hold BW in our hearts."
Though they lived on the same floor in Findley Hall during their sophomore year, it was ultimately mutual friends and activities after BW that brought Aubrey Johansen '13 and Megan Frisina Johansen '13 together.
Aubrey remembers brushing her teeth beside Megan in the shared bathroom before early morning classes — memories Megan insists she doesn't remember. At BW, Megan played on the women's basketball team while Aubrey was a Conservatory major and member of the Motet and University Choirs.
"We joke that what if a little fairy flew down one morning and told us that in 10 years from now, we would be married with a baby, and it always makes us laugh," says Aubrey. "We were just kids then."
Today, the couple shares a toddler son, with Aubrey working at Lady Luck photography studio on Front Street. She often drives through campus, and the family attends BW football and basketball games with friends.
"Any excuse to hit Maya down the street is an opportunity we refuse to miss," says Aubrey. "Also, the amount of times we reference Buzzy's or missing the grilled PB&J days keeps BW alive and well in our hearts."
The family even began their own BW tradition with friends to welcome the next generation of Yellow Jackets.
"BW will always be a special place for us, full of fond memories and beautiful friendships we still have in our lives today," says Aubrey. "When our son was born, our friend passed down a vintage BW onesie to carry on the tradition, and we pass it along to other friends who are next in line. We will always say AWWWW JACKETS."
A weeknight walk from BW's computer lab sparked a romance for Stephanie Kovarik Kiesel '99 and Eric Kiesel '97.
Freshman Stephanie, a Delta Zeta member, met junior Eric through his Lambda Chi Alpha fraternity.
"He offered to walk me home from the computer lab (yes, back then we had to go check our email in the computer lab)," laughs Stephanie. "I had received an email from a high school friend, and he could tell I was sad. His offer to walk me back to my dorm was the start of us getting to know each other."
By Thanksgiving, they were dating. In 2003, the couple returned to BW to marry in the Lindsay-Crossman Chapel, surrounded by a bridal party filled with BW graduates. Today, they have two children, including Kaden, a BW sophomore and track team thrower.
The couple stays connected to BW by attending Kaden's track meets and Eric's football games at BW's George Finnie Stadium as a coach for Avon High School.
"We will always support BW; it is where we went and where our son goes," says Stephanie. "BW started our life together, it is where we made friends we still talk to today, as well as our careers."
A last-minute seating arrangement in a European History class would blossom into a friendship and later romance for Ellen Ober Martin '67 and Rev. Dr. Russ Martin '67.
In the spring of 1964, Russ was a freshman commuter student majoring in religion, while Ellen was an education major from Boston staying in Merner Phieffer. After walking from the other end of campus, there was only one seat left for Ellen in the front row next to Russ.
Despite Ellen having a boyfriend, the two would strike up a friendship that grew over time, exchanging letters over the summer. When Ellen returned to campus sophomore year, Russ sought out Ellen, and the friendship was rekindled.
"Ellen was lamenting not having received any letters from her MIT boyfriend," Russ recalls. "So, I wrote her a letter affirming my interest in getting to know her better and joining me for the Homecoming football game."
The letter worked. Soon after, they began dating regularly. The couple became engaged in 1966 and later married, moving to North Carolina, where Russ attended Duke Divinity School to become a Methodist minister. Ellen began her career teaching elementary education in the Durham County Schools.
Over the years, the Martins have remained connected to BW through alumni events, friendships and financial support, viewing their giving as an investment in future generations of students.
"BW gave birth to our romance and marriage," says Russ. "Without BW, we would have never met. We owe BW an immense debt of gratitude, as do our two children. As we were able, we increased our financial support of BW, believing it was an investment in the future growth of mature, well-trained people."
An attractive girl caught the eye of Mark Danni '88 his junior year as he attended his music history and literature class in Merner Pfeifer Hall. It was 1987 when in walked senior Karen Molnar Danni '87.
"After a week of flirting, we decided to meet up at a local Berea hangout called the Berea Café (the BC) on Front Street," remembers Mark. "We had a wonderful night. We stayed up late talking, and I walked her back to her dorm."
The two began dating and, after graduation, moved to New York City, where Broadway conductor and music director Jack Lee '52 took them under his wing. Lee gave Mark his start as a musician in his first Broadway show, "Grand Hotel." The Dannis were married in 1996 and have three children.
They credit their BW education and mentorship from Lee with furthering their careers in music theatre and leading them to open their own theatre company, TheatreZone, in Naples, Florida.
"BW never told me that 'you can't do this' or 'this is only for these specific majors,' etc.," Mark says. "Being around all these situations and professors with all this knowledge was invaluable."
Over the years, the couple would return to visit the BW Conservatory, and Mark later received two alumni awards: the Outstanding Educator Award and the Outstanding Conservatory Alumni Award.
Nearly four decades later, the couple returned to campus to recreate photos from the classroom and his Kohler Hall dorm, where they first met — a reminder, Mark says, of how BW gave him the freedom to learn, grow and meet his "amazing wife."
First jobs led to first love for Athena Ridgley Woolsteen '18 and Chad Woolsteen '18, but BW was where their love truly grew.
The two first met as grocery baggers at Buehler's while attending Medina High School and continued both their education and their romance at BW.
During their time on campus, Chad studied early childhood education while Athena majored in pre-physical therapy and exercise science. Both were actively involved in Greek life and Campus Entertainment Productions and even studied abroad together in 2017.
After graduation, Chad began his career as an educator, while Athena earned her doctorate in physical therapy and went on to open her private practice, Bee Well Physical Therapy, and remains connected to BW through friendships, campus visits and continued involvement.
"Our time at Baldwin Wallace was such a meaningful chapter in our story," says Athena. "BW feels like home. It was so special to have each other as we grew during those years."
Athena continues to engage with BW professionally through her business, utilizing entrepreneurial programming through BW's LaunchNET as a grant recipient and guidance from the BW Digital Marketing Center. She also speaks to health science classes and serves on the Exercise Science Advisory Council.
"This has been an incredible opportunity for my business and has supported the expansion of our staff," she says of BW's LaunchNET.
Grateful for the opportunities BW provided, the Woolsteens believe in giving back and proudly supporting the lifelong Yellow Jacket community they remain a part of.
