These three couples continued their relationships beyond their high school years
PHOTO: Davis High school couples
By Gwynn Canfield
BlueDevilHUB.com Staff–
KELLY & TOM CARLSON
Class of 1989
In sixth grade, Willett Elementary School students attend Sly Park for a weeklong outdoor education camp. For many, hikes, crafts and stargazing are among their favorite memories from the trip.
However, for married couple Kelly and Tom Carlson, the dance held at the end of the camp would hold the top spot. The two shared their first dance here.
“My (earliest) recollection of liking (Tom) was in sixth grade,” Kelly said. “He was kind of quiet but was always the one that the girls thought was cute and crowded around.”
They saw “Footloose,” together for their first official date, with bowling, swimming and lunch intramurals being popular activities for the junior high dates that followed. The pair also won the Romeo & Juliet superlative for their seventh grade class.
“My memories were all good memories. We didn’t have any drama that I remember, it was just fun,” Kelly said.
Many of the couple’s conversations took place across rotary phones. “We used to have a long cord to our (house) phone and hide behind the walls and talk quietly to each other,” Kelly said. “Our parents used timers to monitor us because we were holding up the line.”
Their relationship lasted from seventh to ninth grade, with Kelly noting that the timing for their relationship just wasn’t right at Davis High. “We (dated) different people and we got to see what we really wanted. For us it was the right thing,” Kelly said.
After their time at DHS ended in 1989, Kelly attended CSU Sacramento and Tom went to UC Davis.
However, the two kept running into each other when their respective colleges would face off in soccer. While still in college, Tom also began assistant coaching the DHS men’s soccer team along with Kelly’s dad, the head coach at the time.
They began their relationship again at age 21 and married in 1995, at age 24. “Once we started dating, it went very quickly because we had already known each other for so long,” Kelly said.
They have three children, the youngest of which is graduating Sonoma State University in 2024. The pair still live and work in Davis together, with Kelly teaching second grade at Willett Elementary.
“I think we both knew that there was a connection for a really long time,” Kelly said. “We felt like it was meant to be because we ended up spending years apart and running back to each other.”
Sarah & Danny Osier
Class of 2001, 2002
Upon the turn of the century, Davis High sophomore Danny Osier’s parents were conveniently out of town. Taking advantage of this circumstance, Danny filled his house with 300 invitees for a “small” New Year’s get together.
Amidst the loud and vibrant party atmosphere, guest Sarah Osier decided to step into a nearby pantry to escape the noise. When Danny followed suit, he found Sarah in the corner enjoying a bag of Cheetos.
“He asked me who I was and what I was doing in his pantry,” Sarah said. “And I just brushed him off like, whatever, that guy’s a loser. But I ended up marrying him and we still love Cheetos and fight over them at all times.”
The pair’s official introduction took place at the Sadie Hawkins Dance, a formal in which the women traditionally ask the men. Due to its outdated concept, the event is no longer held at DHS.
Sarah and her friends, juniors at the time, asked sophomores to the dance. Sarah and Danny went together, a successful date which manifested into a committed relationship.
Both athletes, Sarah recalls watching football games with Danny’s #51 on her back, with Danny attending Sarah’s volleyball games in return.
“It was really fun (dating) because I was like, I’m the older girl and he’s the younger (guy),” Sarah said. “We did everything together that we could and laughed the whole way through it.”
Sarah graduated in 2001 and continued her education at Cal Poly SLO. “(Danny) wanted to follow me to Cal Poly and he did not get in, which is my favorite story because I was smarter than he was,” Sarah said. Danny attended San Diego State instead.
Although the two found themselves at different colleges, they continued dating. “We definitely did our own thing, but we always talked every day throughout the whole thing,” Sarah said.
The couple chose to shift from an exclusive to a noncommitted relationship during college. “I think (that was) the entire reason we lasted,” Sarah said. “If there is any jealousy, then your relationship will fail.”
Maintaining a sense of self amidst the relationship was also key to their success. “The most important thing is putting all your effort into everything you need to do to be (individually) successful, and the rest will fall into place if it’s meant to be,” Sarah said.
After college, Sarah and Danny returned to a committed relationship while they attended nursing school in Napa and law school in Santa Clara, respectively. They married in 2011 and now live in Davis with their three children, ages 8, 7 and 5.
We’re most excited to be back (to) our roots, raising our kids in the same community that we grew up in,” Sarah said.
PAIGE TELLES & ANDREW BAUM
Class of 2022
To culminate the end of their time in middle school, Davis’ ninth grade classes took a trip to Six Flags. For their last ride of the day, Holmes Junior High freshman Paige Telles and a few friends planned to meet up with a group from Emerson Junior High.
Amongst the group was freshman Andrew Baum. The crew boarded White Water Safari, a rafting experience where riders navigate unpredictable river currents, geysers and rocks in a nine person raft.
Due to a ride malfunction, Andrew, Paige and their friends found themselves stuck on the ride together, serving as an instant bonding experience.
“When I got back to my bus, I sat next to my friend who had gone on the ride with all of us and I saw that (Andrew) had followed me on Instagram,” Paige said.
The two started talking over Snapchat and began dating the summer before sophomore year. Their relationship spanned the entirety of their time at Davis High, with the couple attending dances, sports games and prom together.
One of Paige’s favorite memories was their graduation ceremony. “It felt like everything that we had worked for had come to fruition,” Paige said. “Having (Andrew) there with me was so special and it was really cool to see him walk across the stage.”
When they first started dating, Paige told Andrew her two dealbreakers: cheating and having to go long distance. However, the couple found themselves at different colleges after graduation, with Paige at UC Berkeley and Andrew at Lewis & Clark College.
“We’re so connected, I feel like (Andrew) is my other half,” Paige said. “I just couldn’t imagine my life without him, so I was willing to try to make it work.”
The couple agrees that long distance is hard, but FaceTiming, calling and always knowing when they’ll see each other next eases the difficulty. “Having something to look forward to is really helpful. It makes school and a relationship easier to balance in a way,” Paige said.
The busyness of college life has also helped. “Since we’re both so busy with all of our school and extracurriculars, there’s not so much downtime where you’re sitting in that (sadness),” Paige said. “For me, finding a really supportive community here at school has been super helpful.
When they do see each other, the pair tries to spend plenty of one-on-one time together, even going on a road trip to Death Valley over winter break. “It was really nice to spend time off the phones, and we felt very connected with each other,” Paige said.
After they graduate in 2026, the couple is considering living together as a next step. “It’s been really cool to imagine our future and see how that vision has continued to progress as we’ve gotten older,” Paige said.
