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read moreHow Campus Dining Fostered Over 40 Years of Marriage
From student workers to campus leaders, Chartwells’ Donna Bartz and Steve Martens reflect on 45 years in food service, 42 years of marriage, and returning to where it all began.
College dining halls are known for their lively atmosphere, busy meal times, and students chatting between classes. These spaces help students feel at home on campus, and while they are not usually seen as places where romances tend to spark, two student co-workers at the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse (UWL) built a career and marriage spanning four decades.
In 1981, Donna Bartz and Steve Martens met as student employees at UWL’s Whitney Dining Center, where Donna was a student manager, and Steve was a food runner. They have since been married for 42 years, both working for Chartwells and its predecessors for the last 45 years.
When Donna and Steve first met at UWL, they were focused on their work. They were dating other people, but connected over shared work shifts, groups of friends, and the occasional racquetball game. But before graduation, Steve had a sudden realization. As he watched Donna walk past his window on her way to class, he heard a voice in his mind say, “someday, I’m gonna marry that girl.”
Growing together across campuses
They both found jobs after graduation, at different locations of the University of Wisconsin for Professional Food Service Management (PFM) in 1983. They ended up working together on new dining accounts for the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater, where Steve said, “that’s where the relationship really blossomed.”
They fell in love that same year and got married in 1985. They even planned their wedding and Hawaiian honeymoon for spring break, so they could return to campus in time to welcome the students back. Over the next four decades, they transferred between several schools, including Northeastern Illinois College in Chicago, IL, where they welcomed their daughter, and spent 25 years at North Central College in Naperville, IL.
During this time, the couple learned how to balance a busy career with family life. Steve catered at the college president’s house, sometimes six or seven days a week from 6 a.m. until after dinner service, which Steve says would be hard for a normal relationship to withstand, but for him and Donna, sharing that routine complemented their relationship.
“When you work in food service, you know how it goes,” Donna said. “Some other people may ask, ‘What are you doing?’ ‘Why are you there so late?’ When you’ve done those jobs yourself, it helps you to understand better.”
Donna and Steve both credit decades of working together in campus dining for the longevity of their marriage.
“If she’s gone even for a day, I feel like I lost my left arm,” Steve said. “And I’m a lefty. That’s how big a void there is. Even at work, it’s not the same when I know her soul is not on campus.”
Coming full circle at UWL
In 2017, they returned to their alma mater, UWL. Now, Steve is the resident district manager of dining services, and Donna is the associate director at Whitney Dining Center, bringing their story full circle. Reflecting on their own start in campus dining, they use their experience as leaders to mentor younger Chartwells associates, which Kyle Burke, Director of University Centers and Student Engagement, says brings immeasurable value.
“They bring an incredible depth of knowledge and experience,” Burke said. “But even more importantly, they bring relationships and a genuine understanding of the people and communities they serve.”
At Chartwells, people-first culture is built on the belief that campus dining is about creating welcoming spaces where connection, belonging, and genuine care take center stage. Steve and Donna’s story demonstrates that genuine hospitality fosters a sense of community, and builds connections not only with students, but also with coworkers, creating relationships that can last a lifetime.
