Friends First

Taylor Rathbun ’16 and Brian Rodriguez ’16’s Berkshire Love Story

By Megan Tady

Berkshire students make lifelong friends. And sometimes, they meet the loves of their lives, first sharing a campus and then sharing a future.

That’s what happened for Taylor Rathbun and Brian Rodriguez, whose close friendship blossomed into something more after graduation. The couple married on January 8, 2023, at The Saville Dam in Barkhamsted, Conn., surrounded by close family members. Also coming full circle, both Rathbun and Rodriguez now teach and coach at Berkshire. Rathbun, who holds a bachelor’s degree in developmental psychology with a minor in graphic design from Emmanuel College, is a tutor at the Kenefick Center for Learning (KCL), teaches psychology, and coaches soccer and squash. Rodriguez holds a bachelor’s degree in business administration with a concentration in finance from Northeastern University. He’s also a KCL tutor, coaches football, basketball, and baseball, and is a member of the duty team. The couple lives on campus with their dog, Knoxville.

How did you meet at Berkshire?

Rodriguez: We met freshman year, but we were just acquaintances until we were in the same English class junior year with Ms. Connell. We became best friends and started spending a lot of time together during free periods and study hall each night. Senior year, we had a few classes together and just remained really great friends. We did go to prom together and after graduation our friendship started budding into more of a romantic relationship. We went to college near each other in Boston, and after graduating during a global pandemic, Taylor ended up back in Sheffield teaching kindergarten.

Rathbun: Brian had one more year left of school and was playing college baseball, so I spent most weekends driving to Boston to support him. After graduating, Brian took a job working in KCL at Berkshire, to be close to me. Brian proposed on September 2, 2022. We knew we wanted a small wedding and decided to elope on January 8, 2023.

Why is meeting at Berkshire important to you?

Rodriguez: Berkshire is a special place. It was my home away from home throughout high school.

Rathbun: I spent most of the days of the week at Berkshire for four years. It’s important to us because it is where we became best friends. I think much of the success of our relationship is because it was a great friendship first.

What does it mean to you both to be working at Berkshire as a married couple?

Rathbun: It’s really fun! A lot of our coworkers taught and coached us when we were students. So they know and have interacted with us in a lot of different ways throughout the years, and at different stages of our story together. We have gotten to celebrate with them, which has been really nice and exciting.

Rodriguez: It’s also fun because the students know us well, and they know that we graduated together from Berkshire, so they are often very interested in our story.

What place on campus is particularly sentimental for you?

Rathbun: The Dixon Observatory. Not only does it have the best view of campus, but it’s also where I would sit to watch Brian’s baseball games when we were students, and it’s where I continue to sit watching him coach now.

Rodriguez: Shawn’s Place. This is where we would hang out with our friends and each other every day junior and senior year.

Berkshire Couples