This Valentine's Day, four Trojan alumni couples reflected on how the university jump started their relationships and inspired their children to follow in their Trojan footsteps. From the Row in the '60s to the 901 Bar & Grill in the '80s, these alums went from saying "fight on!" to "I do."
Paula and A.J. Kroener –
A.J. and Paula Kroener.
Paula and A.J. Kroener met in August 1983 during their freshman year move-in day at USC. Due to a shortage of on-campus housing that year, they were both placed in the Troy East apartments right off campus.
Paula, a Manhattan Beach native, was unpacking her bag – photos, clothes, neon pink sneakers she had bought in Europe – with her dad, when her mom showed up unexpectedly.
"I hadn't talked to my mom in 10 or 15 years. I didn't even know she knew I got into USC," Paula said. "There are literally 100 kids in the hall, and my mom points to this guy and goes, 'You're going to marry him.'"
Paula disregarded her mom's comment and continued setting up her new room. She needed a hammer to hang photos on her wall and knocked on a neighbor's door to see if they had one.
"The door opened, and I see these white, grandpa shoes that had been freshly shoe-polished, but they were all matte and nasty," Paula said. "I look up, and there was that guy that my mom said I was going to marry.
"What's with the shoes?"
"They're my grandpa's shoes," the guy answered. "He just died.'"
When Paula got back to her room, hammer in hand, she looked at her roommate and said, "I'm going to marry that guy."
"That guy" was A.J. Kroener, Paula's now-husband of almost 29 years. The couple has four children: Jagger, Charlie Belle, Sinjin and Brogan.
"My mom and her mom didn't have a close relationship," said Brogan, a USC student, "so it was especially weird that her mom was that intuitive to think that."
During their time at USC, Paula and A.J. participated in Greek life, she in Kappa Kappa Gamma and he in the recently de-recognized Alpha Tau Omega, and he was the captain of the university hockey team. In fact, he spent their first Valentine's Day in Arizona at an away game, but that didn't stop Paula from celebrating.
"I made him this huge poster, which I still have," she recalled. "The poster said 'A.J., my dream man' and listed all the reasons why."
Brogan attributes his desire to attend USC to his parents' positive experience here.
"Being that they both met there, it was such a strong part of their life and such a strong part of our family's life because obviously we wouldn't be a family if it wasn't for USC," he said. "It adds new meaning to the whole 'Trojan family' thing."
The Kroeners now live in Coto de Caza in Orange County and are as happy as ever.
"I don't really believe in love at first sight," Paula said. "At least I didn't until then."
The Kroener family at Charlie Belle's birth, sporting USC gear.
Laura and Andrew McGinnis –
Laura and Andrew McGinnis, in college and now.
Going to the 901 Bar and Grill, lovingly called the "nine-oh" by many regulars, is a rite of passage for many USC students; The line is always long, and the dance floor is always packed. However, while most students are dancing with their friends and sipping an AMF, they aren't usually expecting to meet their future spouse. For Laura and Andrew McGinnis, though, the 901 Bar and Grill will always be their meeting place.
In spring 1985, Laura, a senior, and Andrew, a sophomore, were standing by the bar's jukebox when Andrew first noticed her. He nudged his friend and asked who the pretty girl dancing near him was.
"His friend told him not to bother," Laura recalls.
Nevertheless, the two started chatting, and Andrew was immediately smitten. "I'm going to date you one day," he told her after just a few hours of talking.
"The rest is history," Laura said.
Now, Andrew and Laura have been married for 28 years and have three children, one of whom, Kelley, is a current senior at USC.
"I think their relationship is really special," Kelley said. "Instead of setting expectations for my own romantic experience in college, their love story proved to me that usc is full of great people."
She also credits her parents' relationship with fueling her love for the university.
"Seeing how much they appreciated USC for their lasting relationship, their life long friendships, and their professional achievements created a desire for a similar level of success in all aspects of life, bringing me to love USC."
Angie and Paul Gange –
Paul and Angie Gange.
From kindergarten to high school to USC, Angie and Paul Gange are what their son Christian describes as "high school sweethearts and lifelong best friends." The couple met in their hometown of San Diego when they were just kids, and they started dating their senior year of high school.
When it came time for college, both Angie and Paul got admitted to USC in 1986, but only Angie went at first.
"My dad didn't want to follow my mom," Christian said, "but within a month, he realized he messed up and wanted to come and be with her."
After he came to USC, Paul studied business and lived on the Row in Sigma Nu, right across the street from Angie, who lived in Pi Phi. She remembers a time when Paul and his frat brother came into her house and serenaded her from downstairs.
"I think it was 'You've Lost That Loving Feeling,'" Angie said. "That was really funny. They were really cute."
She also remembers having a lot of fun at the 1990 Rose Bowl their senior year and going out with friends.
"We loved the 9-0, and then Traditions opened on campus," Angie said. "We still have a lot of really good friends that we were close to in college that we're still friends with now, which is fun, that we see at football games now that Christian's there!"
Christian is now a USC senior, but his love of Trojan sports started long before he was a student.
"[My kids] grew up with the fight song playing all the time and watching USC football games," Angie said. "It definitely influenced [Christian's] decision to go to USC. That kid was born with cardinal and gold. He was born singing the fight song."
Christian agrees that his parents him inspired to be a Trojan.
"I wanted to go to the same school my parents went to because we grew up rooting for them," he said. "The fact that they both went here and I can get the same degree as them was always a huge motivating factor for me. It's definitely why I'm here."
The Gange couple with their son, Christian, at a USC football game.
Stanley Gonta and Carol Grams –
Stanley Gonta and Carol Grams at their wedding, 1963.
Stanley Gonta and Carol Grams met on the Row at USC Greek rush in 1960.
"I was walking around to different sorority houses, and she was walking around to different fraternities, and we happened to meet that day," Gonta said.
During their undergraduate years, the two dated and worked hard. Grams and Gonta had jobs at the local Chevrolet under the famous Felix sign, and Gonta also played for the USC football team, but they both prioritized their studies.
"We did a lot of studying, both of us," Gonta said. "I was going to school in the evenings when she was home, but it all worked out."
He recalls that the social scene then was similar to how it is now.
"We went to the football games, went to some of the sports events, we had some friends we hung around with once in a while," he said.
In 1963, the two got married when Grams was a senior and Gonta was getting his Masters at USC. He says "it wasn't always easy" because of their student budgets, but they found ways to save.
"Financially, we didn't have a lot," he said. "The thing about it that was good was that she had a meal ticket that I didn't have anymore, so I would go with her when she was eating breakfast, and I would eat some of the stuff after she didn't want anything."
Gabby Gonta, Gonta and Grams' granddaughter, is a Masters student at USC like her grandpa was, although she doesn't plan on following the same marriage timeline that he did. She is also a reporter for USC Annenberg Media. The couple got divorced years ago, but their granddaughter admires their relationship.
"They're not married anymore, but as a couple, they were very smart and kind people and I've learned a lot from them," Gabby said. "They embody the Trojan spirit, which I'm experiencing every day on campus."
She also says their legacy here is a big reason she decided to come to USC for graduate school.
“When I was little, I remember dressing up in cardinal and gold and cheering in front of the TV in front of football games because my grandpa would always tell me stories about being on the football team,” she said. “When I had the opportunity to come here, I jumped at it.”
Stanley Gonta and Carol Grams at their wedding, 1963.