Welcome to #UCFLoveStory2026!

We met at UCF in April 2015 at a Diversified Greek Council event…after unknowingly crossing paths more than once. What started as a “summer loving, had me a blast” kind of summer turned into a lifetime. Over 10 years later, we’re married, first-time homeowners, and raising two amazing kids together.

In the summer of 2005, it was instant chemistry when we first met. More than 20 years later, we haven’t stopped talking to each other. On our 10th anniversary, Sept. 11, 2015, we were married, and over the past 20 years we have been raising two beautiful children, Nirali and Hanif Jr., along with Domino, our oldest fur baby. One of our fondest memories is attending student union student nights during our college days.

My wife and I met at the end of 1970 while looking up our final grades on a list posted on a classroom door. It was our first quarter — not semesters back then — at what was then Florida Technological University.

We both lived in the original dorms, which didn’t have names, just letters: A and B for women and C and D for men. Dorm life made dating easier, especially since many of us didn’t have cars. We enjoyed on-campus movies, canoe rides, borrowed bicycles, hiking trails and ping-pong tables.

About 4½ years later, we were married. We later moved to the suburbs of Atlanta in 1989 and raised six children — four born in Central Florida and two after our move. Today, we have two granddaughters. Last year, we celebrated our 50th anniversary with a Disney cruise and stopped by campus to see how much it has changed. While we didn’t have cellphones or the internet back then, those FTU years remain some of the best memories of our lives.

Daniel and I met in a Burnett Honors College symposium called Caribbean Literature and Politics. I was starting my junior year as an English major, and he was beginning his senior year as a finance major. I took the class for the literature; he was in it for the politics. If it weren’t for that symposium, we never would have met.

We partnered for a project and made jerk chicken, and I knew this was more than just a cute guy. He knew I taught spin classes at what was then the brand-new Recreation Center, so he took a class with a friend. It was more intense than he expected, and he had to leave early feeling sick. I followed to check on him, and I guess his strategy worked — because he got a date.

We’ve been together ever since. I returned to UCF for my doctorate, graduating in 2011, and I fondly remember bringing toys and a play mat into the library quiet rooms while working on my dissertation and starting our family. Today, we have two boys, ages 15 and 16, have been married 21 years, and have attended most home football games — and many away games — ever since. If it weren’t for our alma mater, we wouldn’t have the life we have now. Charge On!

It was a humid evening during Homecoming Week 2015, and Minions was playing on a big inflatable screen on Memory Mall for Movie Knight. I brought a blanket for my friend and me to sit on, but we changed our minds about staying. She had friends hanging out in the nearby Towers residence halls, so I followed her there.

She knocked on the door, and Brandon answered. My friend said, “Hi, I brought a friend,” and walked in. I stood in the hallway briefly, completely taken aback — and the rest is history. Ten years later, we are married, have traveled the world and have so much more to look forward to.

I was just 18 years old in February 2022 and going through a really rough time. I had recently ended a toxic talking stage and changed rooms on campus because of bad roommates. I felt overwhelmed, lonely and honestly just needed something good to happen.

One day, I went to Reflection Pond and sat down, hoping for a miracle. As I was about to sit, I smiled at a cute guy walking behind me. I quickly looked away — and then, out of nowhere, he came up and asked how I was doing. We started talking, and even though it was short, I felt something deep inside, like my wish had just come true.

When I found out I was a computer science major and he was a computer engineering major, we bonded even more. It felt unreal, like something straight out of a Hallmark movie. We exchanged socials, and soon after, he asked me out on a bowling date. That night, we shared our first kiss at the bowling alley. Two months later, in April 2022, he asked me to be his girlfriend.

I never thought I’d find my true love at Reflection Pond, but he is the best thing that ever happened to me. We’re almost 3.7 years strong now, and I truly hope he’s the man I’ll one day marry.

Freshman year, we were both in the Libra Parking Garage elevator. We were both in Marching Knights, and I saw his instrument and asked if he was in band. I later saw him at rehearsal — I think it was the Broadway show rehearsal — and he was standing in front of me. He gave me his Snapchat.

We were friends for 2½ years before we finally started dating, and we’ve been together for almost 1½ years now. It was truly a slow burn, but I’m so thankful UCF and Marching Knights brought us together.

I met the love of my life in 2006 while working at the Oviedo Target store. Ryan worked on the sales floor, and I worked in the pharmacy. I mentioned a book I was reading for my UCF English class, The Kite Runner. Weeks later, he came back having read it, too. That’s when our relationship began.

Ironically, we attended the same middle and high schools — Jackson Heights and Oviedo. We met up on campus to study together and eat at Knightro’s, and we were inseparable. Early in our relationship, Ryan was in Drum Corps, and I was working with the UCF Marine Turtle Research program over the summer. He eventually went off to FIEA, and I went to dietitian school.

We tied the knot in 2010 and are celebrating nearly 20 years together this year. Ryan has worked for various video game companies, and I have been a registered dietitian in hospitals and nursing homes. Today, we have two children, ages 6 and 8, at Carillon Elementary School, and have recently moved back to this side of town — just 5 minutes from UCF. We’ve started riding our bikes back to campus to reminisce and recharge, grabbing lunch and checking out the bookstore. We also bring our kids to campus for sporting events. I love that our love story started because of UCF and that we are still part of the culture.

Michael and I met while we were both involved in the Student Government Association in 2018. From being on rival sides of an SGA presidential election to him being my cheerleader through my own Senate elections, we’ve been inseparable ever since. Nearly eight years later, we are now engaged and looking forward to continuing to cheer for UCF from the alumni section as we build our future together.

We were both Environmental Studies majors. He volunteered at the UCF Arboretum while I was an intern. We realized we had a class together and then, the following semester, ended up having multiple classes together. We’ve been together for more than a year now, and I can’t wait to spend the rest of my life with him.

Cristopher and I first met at a UCF basketball game in November 2021. We’ve been inseparable ever since.

My husband and I met at Rosen College of Hospitality Management. We had a class together my first semester there and interacted a few times through group projects. During my second semester at Rosen, we had another class together and recognized each other on the first day. We didn’t talk much after that until our class went on a tour of the Rosen hotel next door.

We started talking during the tour and eventually stopped paying attention completely, engulfed in our own conversation. After the tour, he walked me to my car and asked for my number. We met up at Halloween Horror Nights that night, and the rest is history. We recently got married in September 2024, and he is my best friend in the whole world. I’m so grateful UCF brought us together.