Years after swinging their tassels from right to left, alumni Cary Malkin ‘67 and Lisa Klimley Malkin ‘71, who never crossed paths while at Latin, sparked an unexpected romance.

During his senior year, Mr. Malkin did not expect that his future wife of 48 years would be roaming the same school halls. While young Lisa Klimley admired Mr. Malkin from afar, Mr. Malkin paid no attention to an eighth grader.

Many years after they both graduated, Mr. Malkin was coincidentally living in the same apartment complex as Miss Klimley. They had a chance encounter in 1976 when the primary elections happened to be in the lobby of their apartment complex.

Mr. Malkin noticed Miss Klimley waiting to vote before she approached him. “I was staring at her – that beautiful blonde,” he said.

After a while, Miss Klimley recognized Mr. Malkin from her years at Latin. “The impetus for my approaching him, besides thinking he was married, was my extreme boredom,” she said.

She added that she would never have approached Mr. Malkin with such confidence if she had even the slightest clue that he was single.

Miss Klimley said, “You’re Cary Malkin, aren’t you? We went to Latin School together.” Mr. Malkin was immediately intrigued by her, misinterpreting her approach as a romantic gesture. However, Miss Klimley still thought Mr. Malkin was married.

After their first re-encounter at the election station, the pair immediately hit it off. Making his next move, Mr. Malkin offered to drive her to work after Miss Klimley voted.

When Mr. Malkin and Miss Klimley finally arrived at Marshall Field & Company, where Miss Klimley worked, Mr. Malkin asked her out to a performance by the American Ballet Theatre. Miss Klimley was thrilled when Mr. Malkin asked her out. “For me, it was the perfect date, as I have always loved ballet,” she said.

Mr. Malkin and Miss Klimley made a grave mistake by not eating before the performance, and by the time it ended, it was 11 p.m. Hungry, they panicked as they realized most restaurants were long closed. Lucky for them, the dining room at the Ritz Carlton was open 24 hours.

Mr. Malkin and Miss Klimley enjoyed a late yet memorable first dinner. It was such a special moment between them that, after 48 years, Mr. Malkin still remembers his exact order: Westphalian ham and French champagne.

Months later, in July, Miss Klimley was enjoying a box of Cracker Jacks. Cracker Jacks, native to Chicago, were known for the box with a toy surprise in every package. To Miss Klimley’s shock, she found a ring instead of a toy in the box. Wanting to marry as soon as possible, the couple planned their wedding within the same year.

They married in October 1976 at her parents’ home with a small afternoon ceremony.

They went on to send all three of their daughters, Dorothy ‘01, Victoria ‘06, and Lydia ‘10 Malkin, to Latin.

Mrs. Malkin and Mr. Malkin are the great aunt and uncle of sophomore Josie Malkin, who applied to Latin because of the family history.

Josie said, “My Uncle Cary and Aunt Lisa truly exemplify a strong relationship that has a lot of values.”