Love To Give
By: Bailee Neyland, Development
Throughout the month of February, we will be highlighting on our website the love stories of people brought together at or by Gonzaga University. Many of these couples give thanks to the place where their connection began by making a gift to help spread the Gonzaga Experience with others. The best part? When these alumni couples give, their gift counts as two! Meet the first of our featured couples who share their passion for Gonzaga and each other.
Theirs was the classic collegiate love story: Sparks fly when boy meets girl at a jam band concert – and the rest is history. Meghan (Meg) Bookey (’08) and Brian Eike (’08) were brought together by a mutual friend at a “The String Cheese Incident” show during dead week of second semester their freshman year. Meg recalls her friend saying, “Meg, I know a guy who you really should meet and he is at the concert.”
When they were introduced, neither she nor Brian were aware that they had both lived in St. Catherine/St Monica Hall (CM) at the same time, or that they had taken a class together second semester. But after that introduction, the stars continued to align for this pair as they found themselves on move-in day their sophomore year living directly across the hall from one another. It was that moment that “sealed the deal for us to start our relationship,” the couple said.
Both members of the Gonzaga ski and snowboard club, Brian and Meg spent their time together at Gonzaga involved in a number of outdoor and community activities. Shortly after Brian received his degree in accounting and entrepreneurial leadership and Meg received hers in marketing and human resources with a minor in dance, the two were wed.
Currently living in Seattle, the Eikes maintain a strong Zag connection through their relationships with other Gonzaga alums as well as by attending game watches and other Gonzaga-sponsored events. Both work for the same audit, tax and advisory firm where Brian serves as an Audit Manager and Meg works as a Lead Campus Recruiter. Meg also gets to sustain her connection to Gonzaga through her job, where she manages recruiting efforts for Gonzaga and Washington State University.
They credit the “well-rounded education and community feeling that Gonzaga fostered” in them as the reason for keeping Gonzaga as a part of their daily lives. The pair has continued their commitment to service in the community through active involvement in the Amici young professional service organization that operates under the Fulcrum Foundation, assisting Catholic elementary schools.
Recognizing the impact their Jesuit education from Gonzaga has had on them individually and as a couple, Brian and Meg make it a point to give back to where their love began with a gift of support. They are part of the Young Alumni President’s Council and took advantage of the gift-matching opportunities from their employer. Plus, since they are both Gonzaga alums their gift counts as two.
Gonzaga still plays a role in bringing people together, just like Brian and Meg. If you would like to “show a little love” to Gonzaga, simply visit gonzaga.edu/giveonline.