Notable ND seniors will tie the knot
MAUREEN SMITHE
Senior Staff Writer
At last count, graduating seniors Alison Lasseter and Jess Donnelly figured 25 couples from the Class of 2002 are engaged. Like many Notre Dame women, they've been keeping the count since the first day of senior year.
"We were talking about it one night over a few drinks, and we realized that there were a lot of people getting engaged," Lasseter said.
Their unofficial grapevine calculation provides insight into this unsurprising trend.
Each spring, Notre Dame and Saint Mary's students await to hear which couples will be among a different rank — engaged. Popular estimates among the student body suggest that up to 60 percent of Domers marry a fellow Domer, although exact figures remain elusive.
According to a study published by Notre Dame Magazine, however, co-education at Notre Dame caused a drop from 1 in 4 Saint Mary's students marrying a Notre Dame man to 1 in 10 by the late 1980s.
Without a doubt, the sacrament of marriage is an important one in the Catholic Church. Campus Ministry offers five retreats a year for both married and engaged couples. Most of the retreats fill up quickly.
The student body president
When former student body president Brooke Norton met her fiancé Andrew Lais for the first time, she wasn't necessarily dressed to the nines. Out on an Appalachian house-building trip, the two were living under less-than-desirable conditions.
"We were both wearing old, ratty clothes that we cared nothing about. I was wearing no make-up. When you showered, you smelled worse [the showers had a putrid sulfur odor]," Norton said.
Lais, a 2001 graduate, said the sloppy appearances turned out for the best.
"We were both able to be ourselves when we first met, and that made all the difference," Lais said.
The two hit it off and began dating shortly after their return to campus, despite some major differences.
"He's from South Dakota, I'm from southern California. He's a Republican, I'm a Democrat," Notron said.
Lais said his family's impression of Norton is what made him realize that she was "the one." The two planned a trip to South Dakota to visit his family. Norton's flight got there 10 hours before his, and she had to make herself comfortable — without him.
Norton said she knew Lais was "the one" for her during a big millennium celebration with her family.
"It was a great time, and he really hit it off with all of my family," Norton said.
Just two years later, they shared another important New Year's celebration — their engagement. Lais proposed to Norton on New Year's Eve at a hotel party in Chicago. The two were dancing with a few of his good friends, but when the 10-second countdown came, Lais prepared to pop the question. At the stroke of midnight, he asked Notron to be his wife.
The two plan their wedding for June 28, 2003, at the Basilica of the Sacred Heart.
The Leprechaun
Notre Dame Leprechaun Adam Urra usually never has a problem voicing his excitement. The spirited voice of the student body, Urra is known for doing pushups on the crowd at football games and pepping up fans at basketball games.
The person who would initially silence this vocal titan, however, turned out to be his future wife the night they met at an in-hall dance.
"She was only there for two seconds, but I saw her smile and just was blown away," Urra said.
His fiancée, graduating senior Sarah Affleck-Graves, also noticed the instant attraction even though she attended the dorm dance with someone else. Initially attracted by his good looks and personality, Affleck-Graves soon learned that there was more to this green-tuxedoed mascot.
"[My favorite thing about Adam] is his sense of humor and laid-back attitude. I'm the exact opposite, and he helps me relax and have fun," she said.
Three months after they started dating, Affleck-Graves said she knew Urra was "the one" for her. Urra knew for sure that summer when he told his sister in confidence that Affleck-Graves was "the one" for him.
"My sister laughed at me then, but I proved her wrong," Urra said.
The two dated for a year and a half before getting engaged in last fall. Urra planned the big moment with their faith in mind.
"Sarah and I always go to the Grotto before Mass at Siegfried ... Well, one night we went down and said the rosary and at the end I just asked Mary to pray for our marriage and gave her the ring, and she said yes," Urra said.
Urra and Affleck-Graves said that Notre Dame's focus on faith and community enabled them to envision married life in a special way.
"Notre Dame has definitely impacted us and will impact our married life. Religion has become such a part of our relationship, and that is due to the role it plays here on campus, It has definitely brought us closer together," Affleck-Graves said.
The two have planned a wedding for Aug. 10 at Notre Dame's Basilica of the Sacred Heart. A reception at the South Dining Hall will follow.
"Apparently I didn't get enough of the SDH on campus," Affleck-Graves joked.
The `Double Domers'
When Chad Silker met Beth Sheehan in a history class sophomore year, he knew she was "the one" immediately.
"She'd never believe me, but the first time I felt she could be `the one' was long before we were dating. She finished up an exam before me, and after I finally finished up sometime later I walked out of the classroom, and she was waiting there for me. It would be much longer before we finally started dating, but I somehow knew that day that Beth was different from other girls," Silker said.
The two remained friends for another year before they started dating in March of their junior year.
A year later, Silker knew he wanted to ask Sheehan to marry him, but he also knew he'd have to ask her father first. An opportunity to drive to her hometown of St. Louis seemed unlikely — until a stray cat came into the picture.
"No one had claimed the cat so I was going to keep him. Since he was only 6 months old and not declawed he couldn't really stay at my house here," Sheehan said. "We got home to St. Louis in time for dinner and left early the next morning, but after dinner my mom and I went to check on the cat and while we were gone Chad asked my dad."
A week after that fateful trip to Missouri, Silker popped the question at Sheehan's favorite place on campus, the Grotto. It had always been a special place for them, so after his last time as a campus tour guide, they walked down together, sat on her regular bench and began talking about their relationship. Before she knew it, Silker was down on one knee with a ring in his hand.
Sheehan and Silker agree that the Notre Dame experience prepared them for marriage.
"Once I came to ND and grew to love it and everything special about it, I hoped that I would marry someone who also had the Notre Dame experience," Sheehan said.
In fact, Notre Dame's impact on the couple will continue this fall when they both start law school here. Notre Dame was a perfect fit — just like them.
All News Stories for Friday, May 17, 2002
