With Quinnipiac approaching its centennial in 2029, to date over 1,000 Q Couples are known have met as students or connected after graduation, said Heather Alpaugh, assistant vice president for Alumni Engagement.  

On October 18, Alpaugh helped host a reception for Q Couples who gathered to share some champagne, sparkling conversation and beautiful balcony views at the new School of Business building on the South Quad.  

The couples were also greeted by Mark Spillane, ’15, and his wife, Michele Spillane, ’14, who married in 2021. At Quinnipiac, Mark Spillane is associate director of Leadership Annual Giving.

“Quinnipiac not only has given me a foundation for my career, but it’s actually amazing how much it’s influenced my life on a personal level,” he said. “Not only did we meet here, but we had about 20 Quinnipiac grads at our wedding, including our best man and our maid of honor. That just goes to show how deep the Quinnipiac connection runs in our lives, and I’m sure everyone here has similar stories to tell.”  

Michele Spillane said the couple first got to know each other as good friends while helping to lead Quinnipiac’s Q30 Television as e-board members. After living and working in another part of the country for several years, they are excited to be back in Connecticut and to have such a strong connection with the university that brought them together.  

“It means the world to us,” said Michele Spillane. “We spent eight years living in the Midwest, and now that we’re back, it’s just so nice to be able to get involved with Quinnipiac again, and to get to see how beautiful it is here and how it’s grown.”  

Married just last year, Q Couple Kathryn Lees, ’19, MAT ’21, and Thomas Perry, ’20, MS ’22, met as members of the Quinnipiac University Pep Band, the institution’s premiere music performing ensemble. Lees played tenor sax, Perry played sousaphone.  

“I started coming to Pep Band with some friends I had made through the Honors program, but then they stopped coming, so I was looking for new people to hang out with,” said Lees. “He and his friends kind of swooped me into their group, and that’s how we met.”

Q Couple Todd Howes ’97 and Erica Howes ’97 met on campus as undergraduates and shared a love of the outdoors.  

“We used to hike Sleeping Giant all the time,” said Erica Howes.  

After graduating, they continued to enjoy coming out to climb the Giant together. In fact, this Q Couple may have a Bobcat engagement story to top them all.  

“We got engaged at the top of the mountain,” said Todd Howes. “It was September 7, 2001.”

After they married, the couple settled nearby, raising their two sons while also staying connected with Quinnipiac. A four-year letter winner with the former Quinnipiac men’s golf team, Todd Howes returned to Quinnipiac in 2002 to coach the team for several seasons.

Erica Howes continues her connection with Quinnipiac as part-time faculty with the physical therapy program in the School of Health Sciences. In addition to being a Q Couple, the Howes are also a Quinnipiac Legacy Family, with both CJ Howes, ’27, and Luke Howes, ’29, following in their parents’ footsteps as Bobcats.  

Married since 1987, Q Couple Bob Carangelo, ’79, and Liz Natale, ’79, knew each other well while attending Quinnipiac as undergraduates. Natale was editor of The Chronicle and Carangelo was a student on the yearbook committee.

“We crossed paths a lot and we even had some common friends,” said Carangelo.  

Six years after graduation, they met again during an alumni reunion event in 1985. This year, the couple is celebrating their 38th wedding anniversary.  

“We really met back in the ‘70’s, so it’s almost 50 years that we’ve known each other because of Quinnipiac,” said Carangelo.  

Through the years, they’ve stayed deeply connected to Quinnipiac, establishing several funds including a scholarship in memory of Natale’s mother, Mary S. Natale, who is also a university alumnus as a 1934 graduate of Larson College. The couple also established Quinnipiac’s Frank J. Natale Concert Series and the Martin and Shirley Carangelo Endowed Fund for Global Student Humanitarian & Educational Travel.  

“We’ve sort of inserted ourselves here, and we’ve gotten to see it grow,” said Carangelo.

Natale is also a member of the Quinnipiac College of Arts and Sciences Advisory Council

“To see what this university has grown into is really amazing,” said Natale. “I always say to younger people this isn’t the Quinnipiac we went to – it’s a very different place. I’m incredibly proud to be a graduate.”

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