Stern Sweethearts

In honor of Valentine's Day, the Office of Development & Alumni Relations is pleased to present the sixth annual installment of "Stern Sweethearts"- a profile of couples who met during their time here at Stern. This year's stories are a true celebration of the many exciting facets of romance, from the very beginnings of courtship and engagements to the welcoming of children and long-lasting marriages. As these stories illustrate, love has a magical way of bringing people together, often when they least expect it. You never know – at a Beer Blast, orientation or Spring Break – your Stern Sweetheart may be sitting right next to you.

Natalia Schargorodsky (MBA ‘03) and Pablo Kralj (MBA ‘03)

As told by Pablo: Natalia and I started our MBA in August 2001 and destiny placed us both in Block 1. After the terrible 9/11 episode, the school was closed for academic purposes for almost a week, but we spent several days with classmates preparing sandwiches for the rescue workers at Ground Zero and calling the families of Stern students to let them know that their sons and daughters were fine. That experience, although very difficult, was very important for us. The opportunity the school gave us to help out during that trying time definitely helped us as foreign students to spend those days in New York, away from our friends and families.

Later on we started to study together, preparing exams and group homework. Every day we spent more time together until one day, after Spring Break 2002, we decided to move in together. A few weeks later, we got engaged and decided to travel around Southeast Asia during the summer.

After completing our MBAs in 2003, Natalia needed to go back to Argentina for family reasons and I decided to go and support her during that difficult time. Fortunately things got better, and I got a great job at L'Oreal in Buenos Aires. In March 2004 we got married in Buenos Aires and celebrated that unforgettable moment with our families and friends. Since then, we have decided to stay in Buenos Aires and in March 2009 our lovely baby girl, Uma, was born – making us very, very happy!

We always love to go back to New York, spend some time around the Stern campus remembering the wonderful time we spent together during our MBA studies. The Stern experience changed our careers for the better, but most importantly, gave us a fantastic family to complete our lives. Thanks Stern!

Grishma Parekh (BS ‘02) and Sidharth Murdeshwar (BS ‘02)

As told by Grishma: Stern isn't the quintessential breeding ground for a love story, but it is where ours began. Despite having many mutual friends, Sid and I didn't meet until late our sophomore year. When we finally did, the afternoon after finals, we were over at a friend's dorm room in Carlyle Court. I was actually surprised by Sid, who I had heard such tall tales about. He was tall, quiet and totally disinterested in me (or so I thought). Fortunately for him, that blasé attitude actually intrigued me. Over the coming weeks (and because of a few persistent, intuitive friends), Sid and I found ourselves spending a lot more time together. And, like they say, the rest is history. From that day forward, he has been one of the most steadfast figures in my life and helped to define my college experience.

After graduating, we both began our careers, he went on to earn his masters at the University of Virginia and spent time abroad for work. I stayed true to my New York roots and settled into Wall Street. Through it all our love never wavered but evolved alongside us. Almost ten years later, Sid proposed to me while on vacation in St. Maarten. We were married in June 2009 at Oheka Castle. It was an amazing day and a sort of Stern reunion. Today, we still call New York City our home.

I am forever grateful to NYU and Stern for everything I have learned, for who I have become and for giving me the love of my life (and one day, a Stern baby).

Sapna Patel Nurick (BS ‘06) and Michael Nurick (BS ‘06)

As told by Sapna and Michael: Back in November 2006, an overworked investment banker that hadn't seen the light of day for a while (Michael) was coerced by a friend to attend his friend's birthday party. When Michael arrived and scanned the room, the birthday girl (Sapna) caught his eye. Thereafter for a few months, Michael would coincidentally turn up wherever Sapna was. Turns out they both attended NYU Stern for undergrad and had a lot of common friends, so it didn't seem too weird, but with three non-discrete, scheming friends (Marc Kaadi, Shaun Mehtani, Kate Totaro), Sapna eventually found out this guy had a crush on her.

In January 2007, after trying many ways to connect with Sapna, Michael finally worked up the nerve to ask her out. Their first date was at the MoMA where Michael was a member. Sapna, knowing she had the "upper hand" of sorts, was cool and casual while Michael was unnaturally quiet, but after a few glasses of wine at The Modern, he started spilling many details that were not first date discussion points. Nonetheless, Michael asked for the second date and Sapna accepted, thinking, "Sure, he was awkward but he's a really nice guy (plus he looked really cute in the FB pic of him playing the guitar)."

By February 2007, all mixed signals from Sapna to Michael had dissipated. By March, they proclaimed their love for each other. Quick yes, but when you know, you know ...

The couple married in April 2011, and currently live inFort Greene, Brooklyn and still have plenty of awkward moments together.

Tracy Ogin (MBA ‘10) and Jeremy Stern (MBA ‘10)

As told by Jeremy: I spotted Tracy at Fiddlesticks bar in the West Village of Manhattan during an orientation event for NYU Stern's MBA program in August 2008. Exactly how I spotted her is a bit of a mystery, considering her size and that she was standing next to a 6' 4" classmate at the bar. However, from the moment I met her and started talking to her I knew we had something special. Her personality literally exploded out of her diminutive frame and I soon learned that we shared many characteristics: we were both passionate, fun-loving, outspoken, and held our closest friends near and dear to our respective hearts.