By Gaige Winchester
The bell rings to end the class period, prompting students to fill the halls and teachers to come out to socialize. Mr. Adam Lennon walks two doors down to one of his colleagues and strikes up a conversation. The interaction flows so smoothly because his co-worker is also his wife.
There are four husband/wife duos working at the high school this year. Assistant Principal Ms. Joey Gossett said in her 23 years of experience here, she’s never before seen four married couples teaching together.
Mr. Adam Lennon teaches science and is married to Mrs. Taylor Lennon, who teaches English.
Mr. James Lodl teaches English, while his wife, Mrs. Nicole Lodl, teaches agriculture and vocational classes.
Mr. Sam Carlton teaches government and economics classes, while his wife, Ashlyn Carlton, teaches English.
Mr. Shane Conley teaches special education and peer tutoring, while his wife, Mrs. Mackenzie Dye Conley, teaches family and consumer science courses.
Mr. and Mrs. Carlton met in college at Ball State University, during a fraternity/sorority mixer. Mr. Carlton was in Phi Delta Theta, and Mrs. Carlton was in Alpha Omicron Pi.
They went on their first date in Fort Wayne where they got food at Casa’s and went to the mall to “people watch.”
They got married after Mr. Carlton proposed at her grandparents’ house around their birthdays. He took her to the opposite side of her grandparents’ lake in Markle, Ind., to propose so the family could stand on the other side and watch, but they would still have privacy.
The Carltons are the only one of the four couples to have a child already. Their son, Calvin, is nine months old and is adjusting to daycare well.
Mr. and Mrs. Lodl met through a colleague at Mr. Lodl’s old school, McLean Learning Center in Terre Haute, Ind. On their first date they went to see Guardians of the Galaxy.
“I remember laughing a lot at the same parts of the movie, so I knew it was going well,” Mr. Lodl said.
They got married on the beach on St. Thomas Island in the Virgin Islands. They say they can’t wait to go back for their anniversary.
The Lennons met during their college days. Mrs. Lennon attended Ball State University while Mr. Lennon attended Purdue University. They also went on their first date in Fort Wayne, where they met for dinner at Coney Island, a hot-dog restaurant. Mrs. Lennon was 40 minutes late.
Mr. Lennon later proposed in Michigan City, Ind., on the beach. They both say they want to spend more time at Delta and get their master’s degrees so they can teach dual credit classes here.
They enjoy working in the same building as one another.
“I can’t really complain,” Mrs. Lennon said. “Some people say they would not want to work with their husband or wife, but I enjoy that extra time with him.”
Mrs. Lennon says the best advice she can give a young couple is to date your best friend.
Mr. and Mrs. Conley met by working at Autism Day Camp at Muncie Burris High School during their college years. Mr. Conley attended Ball State, and Mrs. Dye Conley attended Hanover College. They ended up working together and becoming friends, but they never dated until after college.
Their first date was the Indianapolis Zoo on Mrs. Dye Conley’s birthday.
Some of their favorite memories together have been their vacations to Dale Hollow Lake on the Kentucky/Tennessee border during summer break. They both come from large families so they enjoy traveling by themselves because there are less distractions and holdups.
They both agree they have frequent random adventures together. On one of these adventures, they stopped at Shane Co. to look at jewelry as a joke. She pointed out what she liked, and he drove down the next day and bought the ring.
He waited to propose until Thanksgiving break of 2016 because her family travels to the Flat Rock YMCA camp every year. He says he decided to propose there because her whole family would be there.
“She was super surprised when I did ask her so I felt like I had done a good job with it,” Conley said.
As unusual as it is to have four married couples all teaching together at the same school, Ms. Gossett says they handle it well with their degree of professionalism. She also says she thinks it helps that none of them teach in the same department.
All four couples are in their 20’s and 30’s. It will be nice to see them run into their spouses at school for years to come.
