Married and going to Pitt?

[jomolungma]

Hey there - my name is Stu and I'm going to Pitt starting in the fall.  I also happen to be married to a lovely woman named Alison.

One of the things we are both looking forward to is meeting new people and making some good friends during our time in Pittsburgh.  To that end, I was a little disappointed not to see a "Married Students" club listed in the Pitt directory online.  Does anyone know if one exists at the law school?

If there isn't one, I think Alison and I are very interested in starting something up.  It doesn't have to be a formal club (and I don't think I'll have time as a 1L to organize a formal club) but we'd definitely like to meet other married couples to share our agonies, insights and support with.  I was in the Army for three years and had an opportunity to work directly with the Family Support Group for my unit when we were in Iraq.  I'm not saying going to law school will be like going to war, but for the families of the students there are some real similarites, like long-term separation from your spouse, high stress at home and at school/work, and a feeling of isolation.

We'd like to get through all that by banding together a little "support group", which could consist entirely of going to a bar, going to a Pirates game, or doing a potluck at someone's house.  Obviously, all of that would be up for ideas.  The general thing is just to have a group of people sharing a common experience together to provide an outlet for married students and their spouses to go to should they need.  Also, for us, moving to Pittsburgh will be a new experience.  We have family there, but don't know anyone else.  So we'd like to get to know some of you :-)

If you are interested, drop me a line at stu_wexler@yahoo.com.  Even if you aren't interested in doing anything formalized, drop me a line anyway and maybe we'll get together during orientation or something.

Oh, and one last thing - this might be obvious but we're also excited about meeting single people... really, anyone.  But we figure that being married during law school has it's own challenges and rewards, and we'd like to meet others going through the same experience.

[Kittenhawk]

I'm a married Pitt 2L.  I was a bit worried at first as to whether I'd be one of few married students at Pitt.  There is no Married Students club at Pitt, but a lot of students (in my class at least) are married.  In fact, about 1/3 of the students of the journal I'm on are married, and several have (or are expecting) children.  That said, it would have been nice to have that support network as a 1L, so I think an informal club for you guys is a great idea.

[bobcatpanther]

Hey there. I'm Joe and I'm a soon-to-be 1L at Pitt. My wife and I always welcome the chance to associate with other grownups (we have a 4-year-old), so count us in. We got married just before she started med school at Pitt, so now it's my turn to run up some serious debt!

I've lived in or around Pittsburgh almost all my life, so feel free to ask for advice about where to live or whatever. Looking forward to meeting some people -- if you're already in the area, by all means say hi.

[jomolungma]

Hey there. I'm Joe and I'm a soon-to-be 1L at Pitt. My wife and I always welcome the chance to associate with other grownups (we have a 4-year-old), so count us in. We got married just before she started med school at Pitt, so now it's my turn to run up some serious debt!

I've lived in or around Pittsburgh almost all my life, so feel free to ask for advice about where to live or whatever. Looking forward to meeting some people -- if you're already in the area, by all means say hi.

Thanks for responding Joe!  I sent you a more complete response via email, but I wanted to thank you again for your interest.  It's funny, my wife is just wrapping up her PhD in Art History, and while she didn't accrue any debt from that, she's been mostly occupied with school while I worked.  Now the foot will be in the other shoe, so to say.

We are buying a house in Pittsburgh and should be in full-time by August 1, so we'll be sure to say hi.  Thanks again for your post.