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Close-up headshot of Greg Evans and Ronda Wabie in front of a red brick wall
Greg Evans and Ronda Wabie

Ronda Wabie and Greg Evans

A second meeting at the Victoria College pub brought two students eye to eye

Ronda Wabie (BA 1984 NEW) and Greg Evans (BASc 1982, MASc 1984, PhD 1989) met while attending U of T. Greg is now a professor of chemical engineering at U of T, and Ronda is a consultant on Aboriginal Head Start, an early childhood education program. They have two sons: Drew (BA 2007 VIC) and Cass, who just completed his third year of engineering at the university.

Ronda: During my second year at U of T, I attended a house party. One fellow stood out; he wore reflector sunglasses, a police hat and a tuxedo jacket adorned with pins. Apparently his friends were enjoying a good joke at his expense; they had told him it was a hat-themed costume party. We had a long conversation, although I never did see his eyes under those reflector glasses. I told my friends that I could marry someone like him one day, wardrobe notwithstanding.

Greg Evans and Ronda Wabie at a family wedding in 1983
Greg Evans and Ronda Wabie at a family wedding in 1983

Next week at the Vic Pub I met a fellow with gorgeous blue eyes who seemed to know a lot about me. Eventually, I realized it was Greg. Two years later we were married, and had our wedding pictures taken at Hart House and held our reception at the SAC Pub.

Greg: While studying for my master’s degree in engineering, a soccer teammate invited me to a house party. He mentioned that the figure skating team would be there, which sounded like a great reason to attend. Of course, I was the only one dressed for the “costume party.” Luckily, a stunning Aboriginal girl seemed to take a real interest in me. She told me all about herself, including that she regularly attended the Vic Pub.

Next week I went to the pub and found Ronda. She did not recognize me, so I pretended to read her mind and tell her all about herself. After she caught on, she agreed to a date – which led to an engagement, a wedding, two children, world travels and grand plans to summit Mount Kilimanjaro this July on our 25th anniversary.

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