Couples on campus reminisce, affirm relationships

Fourth-year philosophy student David Toney got down on bended
knee in a Charles E. Young lecture hall last February and, with the
periodic table of elements in the background and friends filling
the room, proposed to his girlfriend.

Now married, his wife, Courtney, said she knew a proposal was
coming. She just didn’t know when.

“He wanted to trick me. I thought he would propose to me
on Valentine’s Day. … I was totally surprised,” the
fourth-year communication studies student said.

David proposed at a Campus Crusade for Christ meeting by singing
about his girlfriend and asking for her hand in marriage.

“It was the first time he sang about me in public.
He’s a musician but also a very private person. It meant a
lot to me,” Courtney said.

This year will be the first time Courtney and David celebrate
Valentine’s Day as a married couple.

As chocolate-covered strawberries are devoured and red roses
delivered nationwide, friends and couples around campus will also
be celebrating Valentine’s Day today.

According to the Greeting Card Association, an estimated 1
billion Valentine’s Day cards are sent every year.

It is a day reserved for lavishing admiration upon loved ones,
and for couples who are either married or engaged, it can also
affirm their commitment to each other.

Though Valentine’s Day falls on a weekday and in the
middle of midterms, many will still be celebrating the holiday,
whether with a candlelight dinner or gift-giving.

Adrienne Matosian, a third-year political science student, has
plans tonight for a romantic dinner with her fiance of six and a
half months.

The day will be an opportunity for the two to remember their
past as they plan for a June wedding.

Matosian met her fiance, Edwin Derohanian, while searching
through an Armenian dating Web site.

“I never trusted that stuff. But one day, when I was
bored, I came across his profile and thought he was cute,”
she said.

It later turned out that Matosian’s friend knew Derohanian
and the two were introduced. Two months into the relationship,
Matosian said she knew he was the one.

“We were very compatible. It was obvious from the
beginning. We even have the same exact birthday, Sept. 18. …
Everything was compatible. It was a match made in heaven,”
she said.

For Matosian, the relationship was a pleasant surprise after
years of thinking of marriage as a far-off eventuality.

“I never thought I would get married so early in life. I
know a lot of people who say it’s not going to happen for
them and that the right person is not out there, but I tell them to
keep their hopes up. There’s always someone,” she
said.

For some college students, the thought of a serious relationship
seems overwhelming in the face of academic rigors and uncertain
futures upon graduation.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the median ages at first
marriage in 2004 for women and men was 25.8 and 27.4 years,
respectively.

But for both Matosian and Courtney Toney, their relationships
have been far more a blessing than a hardship.

“The thought of getting married helped me be more
productive than ever. … He just encourages me and motivates me.
It’s very refreshing and I’m very excited (about
getting married),” Matosian said.

In the beginning of her marriage, Courtney admitted she had
difficulty trying to balance school, friends and married life. But
after five months of marriage she’s gained perspective.

“I was sitting and studying with my husband and I thought,
“˜Oh my gosh, it’s actually been a
blessing,'” Courtney said about the opportunity to
spend a lot of time with her husband.

Since they are still in school, they have gotten the chance to
grow accustomed to married life, seeing each other frequently
throughout the day.

Now a wedding planner herself, Courtney met David at a church in
Orange County when they were both in junior high school.

The two have only been apart once.

During her sophomore year of high school Courtney was diagnosed
with cancer and they decided to stop dating.

“He stayed by my side the entire time. For a year and a
half he supported me while I went through all (the) treatments.
When I went into remission, we got back together,” Courtney
said.

“A lot of people think you’re crazy. But for us,
we’ve just been together so long. I’m just glad God
made it possible for us. It’s one of the best decisions
we’ve ever made,” she said.