Skip to main content

Love is in the (campus) air: 5 Concordia couples tell their stories

It's time to celebrate university affairs … of the heart

A Concordia tale from the heart: Erin Sparks and Patrick Greatbatch went on their first date at Burritoville. A Concordia tale from the heart: Erin Sparks and Patrick Greatbatch went on their first date at Burritoville.


Hallmark cards, chocolate, roses — it all becomes a little trite, doesn’t it?

For a down-to-earth twist on Valentine’s Day, we asked five Concordia couples to share their campus love stories.

Some of these affectionate twosomes were originally profiled in this 2014 Valentine's Day article. Let's see where are they now, while checking in with new lovebirds and a few lucky, longstanding couples.

Got your own campus tale from the heart? Follow #CUlove on Instagram. 


Erin Sparks and Patrick Greatbatch (together for five years)

When we first met Erin and Patrick, they’d been together for three years, following a successful first date at Burritoville.

Where are they now? Five years later, they’re still going strong.

“We’ve lived together for the past two and a half years,” says Erin (BA 14, Sociology and Anthropology). “I’m currently doing a solo bike tour around New Zealand, and Patrick is backpacking around Southeast Asia. But we’ll both be back in Montreal at the end of March.”

The pair met at a going-away party for Erin’s brother, who had lived in residence with Patrick.

Patrick graduated in 2012 with a degree in Communication Studies.

“We went to the same school, knew the same people,” says Erin. “It made it easy.”


Sabrina Diez and Michael Latufara (together for two years)

They’d only been together for two months when Sabrina and Michael were profiled in our 2014 Valentine's Day article. Now, there’s talk of the m-word, “marriage.”

“We’re both saving to eventually get married and move out together,” says Sabrina, who is set to graduate this term with a BSc in Biochemistry. Michael was in his first year in Exercise Science when they met. “Our relationship hit a few bumps, but we are very much in love,” she says.

“I wouldn't change anything about it. He is my rock and my happiness. He has the best heart.”

Sabrina and Michael's story began when Sabrina followed him on Instagram. After becoming Facebook friends, they met for coffee on campus … and another coffee. The rest is history.

Photo by Photo LTaic Photo by Photo LTaic


Alyssa Patterson-Lapierre and Camilo Enrique Lara Menéndez (together for 10 months)

“I met my soulmate at JMSB,” says Alyssa.

Their love story began in October 2014. The two current business students met at Newtown, a restaurant on Crescent Street, during a second-round interview to be in the John Molson International Business Association (JMIBA). At the time, Camilo was the vice-president of finance and Alyssa was applying for the director of marketing position.

“The theme of the interview was speed dating, so I guess you could say we met during a speed dating night,” she says. “When I got to his table we clicked automatically and we had so many things in common. Turns out, I made the team. We became very good friends and obviously had a thing for one another.”

But it was frowned upon for members of the association to date someone within the group, so the lovebirds tried to keep their relationship on the down-low.

“That clearly failed and we started seeing each other openly. In April, he finally asked me to be his girlfriend and we've been together ever since. During that month, he became the co-president of the JMIBA and I became the vice-president of creative marketing. So that's the story of the president and his first lady.”


Candace Jacobs and Pablo Chacon (together 14 years, married for 11)

It all started at a Concordia orientation session for new students in 2002. Three years later, there were wedding bells.

“We were both registered in a graduate JMSB business diploma in administration — a program that no longer exists,” says Candace, who works at Concordia as a manager of Student Recruitment Marketing and Communications.

They met officially in an accounting class about a week later.

“We happened to sit beside each other in class,” she says. “He didn't have his books and I had mine, so I offered to share so he could follow along,” says Candace, who went on to earn her MA in Educational Studies in 2007.

“Basically, I'd say all the stars aligned at Concordia so that we could meet. We both happened to register in this accounting class (he registered at the last minute, to boot), and there was an empty seat beside me in class.”

A few years later, Candace sent the program coordinator a photo of their wedding.


Patricia (Barter) Lavoie and Michel Lavoie (together for 43 years)

French literature student meets … Jesuit? It’s a love story worthy of Hollywood.

When Patricia Barter met Michel Lavoie in 1972 during registration at Loyola College, the script wrote itself.

“A young girl from Toronto and a young Jesuit from Winnipeg found themselves signing up for courses in the 12-month diploma program called Communication Arts — an act that was about to change their lives,” says Patricia, a respected force in Canadian film and television.

“After registration papers were submitted, everyone had their photos taken for their student card. And that is how Michel and I ended up with photos of ourselves on the day we met. They are the only photos we have of our time in Comm Arts, but they’re a great souvenir.”

Patricia and Michel saw each other frequently in the hallways and had one course together. By Christmas, Michel, who had been taking the year to reflect on his position with the Jesuits, decided to leave the order and seek work in the field of television.

“At the end of the year, after we dated for a week, Michel returned to Winnipeg for a job at Radio-Canada,” says Patricia. “I followed shortly thereafter and we were soon married.”

After three years in Winnipeg, her first job with Sesame Street and Michel’s acceptance of an offer to become executive producer of Sesame Street Canada, the couple moved to Montreal and have lived here ever since.

“Our careers eventually took us into the independent production community,” says Patricia.

The Lavoies have two daughters who both graduated from the Department of Communication Studies at Concordia.

Michel studied business and life coaching, and the couple recently published their first co-authored book, Coaching Unleashed.



Got a tale to share? Or want to see more? Follow #CUlove on Instagram for more Concordia stories from the heart. 

 



Back to top

© Concordia University