Tom & Keeley
Wedding Party
Robin Maurer
Best Man
Based off results from the all-knowing housing survey, the University of St. Thomas placed Robin and Tom together in Ireland Hall freshman year. They clicked instantly due to their mutual fear of not making friends in college, and remained roommates for three years when a true bond formed.
Emily Burnside
Maid of Honor
Emily and Keeley have been best friends since middle school. Growing up, it was a running joke that the two could never be left alone together because of their constant scheming, which involved going on adventures (dubbed “odysseys”), tie-dying anything white they could find, and exchanging notes labeled “Secret Government Information” during class.
Nick Diesslin
Groomsman
One day at lunch in third grade, Nick introduced himself to Tom by accidentally squirting a Go-Gurt all over him. For the past 20 years, Nick has devoted himself to overcoming that first impression. Fun fact - he's performed on The Tonight Show and America's Got Talent.
Ashley Piche
Bridesmaid
Ashley and Keeley took their first ballet class together at age 5, but didn’t really know each other until middle school. Eventually, they toured colleges together and decided to become roommates at St. Thomas. They’re probably best known for being mistaken as sisters, having a lot of snacks in their dorm room, and dancing the parts of Fred and George Weasley in a Harry Potter production.
Austin Collins
Groomsman
A fellow North High alum, Austin graduated from Drake University one semester early like Tom. Eager to reclaim their independence after moving home, Tom and Austin became roommates. During their three and a half years living together, they once ate chicken wings every weekend for 52 consecutive weekends.
Jaclyn Romano
Bridesmaid
During freshman year of high school, Jaclyn and Keeley ended up having lockers next to each other because their last names were close in the alphabet. After walking to lunch together every day in ninth grade, Jaclyn and Keeley grew closer through a shared interest politics and taking jokes too far. Keeley also keeps a framed picture of Jaclyn and her dog, Nala, in her office.
Dan Blattner
Groomsman
Dan met Tom freshman year at St. Thomas. He's one of the few people who can convince Tom to stay awake past midnight. He has also lived with Robin and Austin, and has his sights set on Nick next.
Theresa Ludwig
Bridesmaid
Theresa and Keeley met through the St. Thomas Facebook page for accepted students when they realized they had a shocking amount of things in common. Though Theresa now lives back in her hometown of San Diego, she lived with Keeley and Tom for a year after they bought their house. She also spent several holidays with the Nortons during and after college, and Keeley’s mom refers to Theresa as her “little California girl”. Theresa and Keeley share a love of themed photoshoots, Black Friday shopping, and binge-watching the Food Network.
Alex Krause
Groomsman
Tom met Alex (aka Krause) one night in Ireland Hall sophomore year, and appreciated his fast-talking personality and knowledge of sports. If you start a conversation with him, buckle up and get comfortable, because you might be there a while.
Katherine Pappas
Bridesmaid
Katherine and Keeley met through mutual friends during their first year of college, when they made the impulsive decision to become roommates sophomore year. Katherine and her family have always treated Keeley like another family member, which is particularly beneficial whenever the Minneapolis Taste of Greece festival comes around (though Keeley promises she loves Katherine more than gyros and spanakopita).
Trista Moore
Usher
Trista and Tom may have chatted as early as first grade, but it wasn't until high school Tom realized he could actually befriend women. Trista attended college down the road at St. Kate's!
John Giesen
Usher
John met Keeley and Ashley (see “Bridesmaid”) when they helped him move into his dorm on Freshman Move-In Day at St. Thomas. John and Keeley once made a pact to purposefully fail a theology quiz freshman year (the syllabus allowed them to throw out the lowest grade of the semester), but it backfired when the professor was so amused by their fake answers that he gave them both full marks anyway.
Aaron Calton
Reader
Aaron and Keeley met in Washington DC in 2004. They were both participating in a week-long trip for kids studying history and government. This is probably the one time in history when two kids met on a school trip, said “We’re going to be friends forever!”, and it actually worked out. Keeley let Aaron copy her worksheet on Eisenhower’s farm, and an instant friendship was born. Despite Aaron living in Cleveland and Keeley in Minnesota, the two have stayed close friends over the last 15 years.
Jane Krause
Honor Attendant
Jane became one our dear friends when she started dating Alex (see "Groomsman"). Together, we've had many great couple dates to do things like visit the Science Museum, play board games, and learn some sweet dance moves. Jane shares our love of cats, Harry Potter, and library books.