22 | FOREVER Keele
ALUMNI CONTRIBUTIONS
A Keele love story
What more picturesque place for a proposal than Keele Hall ? Both graduates in Adult Nursing , alumnus Mike Smith shares his own Keele love story with fiancée , Harley Smith .
On 11 September 2021 , I finally asked the love of my life that one special question , “ Will you marry me ?” I had planned this day for a long time , and I always wanted to propose at Keele Hall , the place that means so much to us both .
Harley and I met at Keele University in March 2017 . I had recently completed my nurse training at Keele , and I was coming back to the University as an NHS employee , talking to the students about my time as a student nurse and what to expect once they had qualified .
I remember seeing Harley at a lecture I spoke at , walking down the stairs wearing a Metallica shirt . I mentioned to my friend Ivan , who was in her circle of friends , that her t-shirt was cool and how she looked like my type of girl . And with that , Ivan played cupid and the rest was history . Harley reached out to me on social media , we met up and we have been together since .
Keele is important to us ; it is the place that brought us together , and for Harley ’ s birthday a couple of years ago I even themed all her presents to be Keele-related - Keele mug , poster , graduation bear and her Keele graduation pictures !
We both currently now work as associate lecturers for the University , picking up shifts besides our full-time jobs , to help teach the new generations of nurses , and we have even had the opportunity to work together on some of those sessions .
I am very proud of Harley ; she has just been successful in getting a full-time post as a teaching fellow at the School of Nursing , which she will start soon .
Keele will always hold a special place in our hearts and on 11 September this year , we consolidated that emotion when Harley said “ yes ” outside Keele Hall . One of the best days of my life .
I wanted to take the opportunity to say thank you to everybody at Keele that has supported and guided us in our journey from students to nursing professionals .
We wouldn ’ t be the people we are today without Keele .