After getting off of the stage with beaming lights in her face, dance teacher Kristen Oakes was handed a rose by her husband, Stephen. It is never determined when you are going to meet your soulmate, but for Oakes it all started after her first talent show in fifth grade.
“We were in fifth grade at Perry Harrison in Mrs. Lipson’s class,” Oakes said. “We dated in fifth grade then broke up in sixth grade, got together in seventh grade, etc. It’s just one of those things that we were a part of each others lives whether we dated or were just friends.”
From meeting in fifth grade, all the way to high school and then marriage, Oakes feels that she and her husband, Stephen, were meant to be together.
“We’ve grown together and so we’ve seen each other at our best and at our worst,” Oakes said. “I’ve known every version of him and vice versa, and so for us to still want us to spend our lives together is amazing. I think we’re going to make it for a while.”
Oakes’ mom, JoAnn Norwood, felt that Oakes and Stephen were going to be together from the beginning.
“When I think of Kristen and Stephen I think of these phrases: ‘Together at last, worth waiting for, not just puppy love, a match made in heaven,’” Norwood said.
These married couples all have familiar stories, but the way each one of them met are all unique in their own way.
CTE teacher Rick Parks met his wife, Jessica, when he was a freshman at Jordan Matthews while she attended Northwood.
“Here’s another twist to it: my mother actually worked here while my wife was going here,” Parks said.
Since these couples have grown up together, they share many similar interests.
“You know, we like the same types of foods, we like to go out to the same types of places, we’ve really kind of grown up together,” Parks said. “We’ve always been together.”
With Oakes’ relationship, her parents were always involved, and it’s common for them to have their own opinions.
“Well, my mom has always loved Stephen, because she taught both me and him in sixth grade at Perry Harrison,” Oakes said. “Any dad is going to be skeptical of any boy that I bring home.”
Norwood has always considered Stephen as one of her kids, especially since they have spent so much time together.
“I have been involved in Stephen’s life off and on since he was in my class,” Norwood said. “As a teacher, once you’re my kid, you’re always my kid.”
High school and being separated can sometimes take a toll on a relationship, but in these cases they worked through it.
“The first year of college was real tough,” Parks said. “Both of us have a pretty strong will and determination, and I guess it was like, if it was expected to be done, we did it.”
Oakes feels that when you’re in a relationship, you still have to make decisions that support your goals.
“I went to ECU for myself,” Oakes said. “I went there for the dance program, because it’s what I wanted to do, what I needed to do in order to graduate with a degree.”
After his first semester at ECU, Stephen found his passion elsewhere.
“He came back [home] and started working,” Oakes said. “College isn’t for everyone, and he wanted to work with cars, so spending money wasn’t needed.”
After spending seven years together, Oakes and Stephen married in August 2015.
“When we got married, it was truly a celebration between the two families, because we finally made that step,” Oakes said.
Norwood’s favorite memory was during the rehearsal dinner.
“Stephen was so emotional about finally getting to the altar that he could barely make his speech,” Norwood said. “Kristen broke down and cried when he kissed her goodnight because she was finally going to become his wife the next day.”
Parks was also aware that he wanted to spend the rest of his life with his wife, so they took the next big leap together.
“‘Hey, I’m going to spend the rest of life with you, I guess it was just a building process,” Parks said. “At some point I knew, I guess the time when I asked her to marry me. Now I’m 33, and we’ve been together since I was 14, so 19 years.”
Parks and Jessica have learned to compromise over the years.
“It wasn’t long ago where she complained when I washed the clothes because I dried something, and I said, ‘That’s fine, I’m never going to do the clothes again,’ and to this day I have not done them,” Parks said.
Oakes and her husband have a conflict that still remains prominent now.
“We disagree on his deer, ducks and turkeys all over the house, and right now they are currently in a room upstairs where I can shut the door,” Oakes said.
In the end, these sweethearts feel like meeting someone you spend your life with is an amazing thing. Rick Parks, overall, feels that marriage is all about working together.
“I guess it’s just, you’re willing to do anything, regardless of how it makes you feel,” Parks said. “Your main objective is to make the other person happy. I think when you love somebody, you are willing to do those things, willing to sacrifice more than anything else for that one person. I was very lucky and fortunate enough for her to like me as much as I liked her, I can tell you that.”
– By Carter Owings and Harleigh White