Each year, as another class of Lafayette College pupils graduates and becomes alumni, they leave with lifelong friendships and mentors. But some lucky leopards leave with a long-lasting love match.

Kendall Bierman ’18 and Alexander Bierman ’18 got together after reconnecting during a fraternity party. (Photo courtesy of Kendall Bierman ’18)
Fraternity fraternizing

Kendall Contri Bierman ‘18, who transferred to Lafayette for her sophomore year, was set up with Alexander Bierman ‘17 as a date for a formal. They hit it off, but it wasn’t until they reconnected a year later and spent the entirety of a Phi Kappa Psi “foam party” talking in a kiddie pool that they really clicked. 

“I was like, ‘I forget why I stopped talking to you,’” Contri Bierman said.

Alexander Bierman made a “real reservation” at a “real restaurant” for their first official date, she said.

After viewing some Christmas lights and watching “Elf” (2003), “That’s when I realized, ‘Oh wow, I really love him,’” Contri Bierman said. The couple was married in 2022.

Lafayette-themed wedding
Alisa Lando ’10 and Sara Kreisel ’07 were married at the periphery of the Quad in front of Skillman Library.(Photo courtesy of Sara Kreisel ’07)

Alisa Lando ‘10 met Sara Kreisel ‘07 at Hillel House in 2006 during an admitted students event. A friendship flourished on AOL Instant Messenger, and soon enough, they started dating at the beginning of the following school year. They were the first same sex couple photographed in The Lafayette.

Lando and Kreisel were married on campus in 2015. Their wedding theme? “Live, Laf, Ahava” — “Ahava” means love in Hebrew.

“We hired tour guides to give small tours to our guests as they were brought from March Field parking to the Quad where we got married,” Kreisel said. “We had the Chorduroys perform at the cocktail hour. Because why not?”

Philosophy of love
Alicia McElhone ’12 and Steve McClain ’12 were married by philosophy professor Owen McLeod. (Photo courtesy of Alicia McElhone ’12)

Alicia McElhone ‘12 and her husband, Steve McClain ‘12, met in philosophy professor Owen McLeod’s class in 2010. 

“Our Lafayette Venn diagram had basically no overlap — Steve was in Greek life, athletics, and math/econ, and I was in a cappella, musical theater, and philosophy/film,” McElhone wrote in an email.

McElhone and McClain had a mutual crush in college, but only reconnected in 2021 through Twitter. McClain noticed a popular author mention McElhone in a tweet and decided to slide into her direct messages.

“We both happened to be single and living in the city, so… we met up for a bundled-up outdoor brunch during the pre-vaccine COVID times,” McElhone wrote. “Halfway through the date, the conversation turned to the philosophy class and Prof McLeod — we talked about how fondly we both still think of Owen and the lasting impact he’s had on our lives and thinking.”

“Marry us? – your former students,” read the subject line of the email to McLeod.

“He unsurprisingly delivered,” McElhone wrote about the officiation of the 2024 wedding.