School of Dentistry Love Stories
In addition to fillings, extractions, and bridges, there’s been plenty of romance fluttering through the halls of CHS over the past 60 years!
In advance of Valentine's Day, we put out the call to Bruin alums and students, asking for your UCLA School of Dentistry love stories. From Class of 1977 alums approaching their golden anniversary to a couple who found each other on the first day of D1 orientation last September, thanks for sharing your heartwarming tales of matches made in heaven … and scrubs.
See our happy couples in the video slideshow below, and read their “how we met” stories here…
Chapter One: Longtime Loves
Donald Mark and Kristin (Beckman) DeVincenzi (‘77)
“First day of dental school, when Don asked to borrow a pencil: ’Nothing happens on the first day!’ Started dating two years later ... With a great friendship as our foundation.”
Melanie Gullett and George Maranon (‘83)
“Became friends in dental school and then met up again at our 10-year reunion. Friendship turned into marriage and happily ever after since!”
Arthur (‘83) and Susan S. Nimmo (‘85)
“We met at Hershey Hall (grad dorm) our first year. Innocent flirtation followed by quiet lunches at the Bomb Shelter, happy hours at Acapulco’s with margaritas and nachos, and ski trips to Mammoth. Four years later we were married and we have had a wonderful life together.”
Lawrence Wolinsky (‘86) and Amerian Sones (‘84)
“We met in dental school pre-clinical rotation and we did not date until after graduation. It has been a great love story and we are best friends and still celebrating Valentine’s Day!”
Rosellen (Diehl) and Greg Hong (‘86)
“We met in dental school, of course! We started dating in our last year and have been together for 38 years. Our daughter is a SOD graduate, too: Class of 2017!”
John and Helene (Tran) Shen (‘03)
“We met during orientation at the start of our D1 year and became better acquainted during late study nights at the Biomed Library.”
Kim Lugtu and Brian Nagai (‘06)
“Brian and I were classmates in dental school. However, it wasn’t until we were in residency that we started a long distance relationship. The saying is true: ‘distance makes the heart grow fonder’“
Amir Chalak (‘11) and Katy Rosen (’13)
“It was finals week in December 2010 and Katy, class social chair, was selling tickets to a dental school event. Amir met Katy in the Biomed Library to purchase a ticket for the event and they hit it off! The rest is history!”
Chapter Two: Newly(ish)weds
Jessica Koh ‘13 and Farzad Moghaddam (‘15)
We became friends in the lab - I showed him how to use a Baseformer for models. We started dating two years later, ate a lot of Thai food at Jitlada, got engaged there, and now we’ve been married for five years with two kids! They can be any kind of dentist they want to be.
Justin Wu and Sandra Yen (‘14)
“When you're stuck next to someone alphabetically in anatomy lab and preclinical lab from day one... studying, memorizing, waxing, drilling the hours away. We even got a dog together during fourth year of dental school, when stress levels were highest (what were we thinking?!). Happy to share that this impulsively adopted dog is now 11 years old and frenemies with our three-year-old daughter!”
Favian and Janelle (Gunther) Cheong (‘16)
“We were in the same class and played on the dental soccer and kickball teams together. We started dating during first year and have been together since. We are now married and have two sons - thanks UCLA SOD 😉 “
Travis Steinberg (‘17) and Charlotte Etesse (‘18)
“We met in Room 13-041 and then at the dental school mixer welcoming the 2018 class!”
Sean Sooferian and Chantelle Ghiam (‘18)
“Although we knew of each other prior to dental school, it was not until halfway through our journey in dental school that we went out on our first date. Fast forward seven years later, we now have two young children under two years old and live minutes away from UCLA!”
Anthony Le and Lily Zhuang (‘19)
“Some flirty exchanges during our first year class cruise trip which eventually led to a proposal in our fourth year. Married for over three years now and expecting our first dragon baby in March!”
Melvin Relf and Sachi Mehrotra (‘19)
“We first met at our class's Big Bear trip held a week before dental school orientation. After sitting next to each other on the bus ride home from the annual DSD Halloween party, we hit it off and have been best friends since.”
Garrett Worsey and Liza Niss (‘20)
“We got to know each other towards the end of our D2 year, and the rest was history! Right after graduation we moved to Connecticut for three years while Liza completed her Ortho residency. We got engaged in 2021 while on a trip to Italy! We’re now settled back home in LA and just got married in Provence, France this past September!“
David Ochoa (’21) and Ariana Faron (‘23)
“We met at the Jacaranda bbq pits at a DSD rush event. David was in his third year and Ariana was in her first. He convinced her to join DSD by complimenting her on her smile. That was almost five years ago; we are getting married this August.”
Sabrina Noorvash and Kiarash Payani (‘23)
“We met during first year of dental school and instantly became best friends, always hanging out and studying together. By the beginning of our third year, I asked Sabrina out on a date and she said yes! And the rest is history…”
Chapter Three: Current Bruin Beaus
Hillary (‘27) and Dustin Tran (‘25)
“We met in 2020 while we were both undergrads at UCR in a predental club meeting! And somehow, we both made it here into the best dental school. Love stories don’t get much nerdier than that.”
Catherine Johnson and Reule Yardley (‘26)
"I sat next to him in class in the first week of school. I had my yoga mat and he told me that he did yoga too! We started going to some classes together and found out we had a lot more in common than just yoga! We hike, backpack, travel, and eat lots of yummy food together! Oh and of course study teeth together! :)"
Nora Ayache (‘27) and Rishi Solanki (‘26)
“We met in high school and were close friends during community college. I asked her out in the back kitchen of a Pizza Hut I worked at and the rest is history!”
Nadia Ballard and Olivia Collis (‘27)
“We met the first day of D1 orientation, she asked about my Webkinz toucan keychain and it was love at first sight!”