The (cell) biology of love: Nurses meet in class, fall in love
Kevin Lukkes, RN, remembers the first time he saw his soul mate.
He was just starting school at Highline College and knew he wanted to do something in the health care field, but wasn’t quite sure what. So he signed up for some prerequisites — one class was Cell Biology 101.
That’s when he saw Jenni Lukkes, RN. And there just happened to be an empty seat next to her.
Kevin caught Jenni’s eye, too.
In their words, here’s the story of how they became partners and co-workers.
“I noticed him on day one because he is tall and handsome,” Jenni says. “I think he noticed me too because it wasn’t long before we started talking.”
Kevin says, “I started talking to her and she said, ‘I’m going to be a nurse. What are you going to do?’ Well, what else would I say? ‘Yes! I’m going to be a nurse, too!’”
“I told him I was going into either dental hygiene or nursing, but I was leaning more toward nursing,” Jenni continues. “Kevin told me he was doing nursing, too. I’m thinking wow, what a nice guy! That made me want to stick with getting into the nursing program even more.”
“Honestly, the reason I’m a nurse is because of her,” says Kevin. “We took most of our classes together. After a while we got married and now we have two kids.”
The two married in 2009. Both are registered nurses and currently work at MultiCare Covington Medical Center Emergency Department under Nurse Manager Mandy Schaff.
Fun fact: The Lukkes and Schaff worked together for about eight years at another organization. Kevin precepted Schaff when she first came to the U.S.
“I worked with both of them for years,” Schaff says. “I’m so thankful to have both of them on my team.”
Best friends and teammates
“I found out — years later — he just decided on nursing because of me,” Jenni says. “He told me later he was leaning toward radiology tech or something else in health care. When we met, he was still not sure.”
After they met, the two were inseparable. They had so many similar interests.
Together, Jenni and Kevin went through the certified nursing assistant (CNA) program. From about 2006 to 2008, Kevin worked as an emergency department (ED) tech and Jenni as a CNA on a medical/surgical unit while they both finished nursing school.
In 2012, Jenni felt she needed a change. For a few years, she and Kevin worked together after he helped her feel confident that she’d do well in an ED setting.
Jenni started working at the MultiCare Covington Emergency Department in 2015, a standalone facility at the time and a parking lot away from the busy Covington Medical Office Building.
“I have really enjoyed working at Covington ED and feel valued as a nurse here,” Jenni says. “I saw the new hospital built in 2018, and I’ve seen lots of changes over the years. It’s a nice facility and the people we work with are great.”
Over the years, Jenni encouraged Kevin to join the Covington team.
“I recruited Kevin because he is an awesome nurse, skilled and confident,” she says. “I knew he would be a great addition to the team.”
“The team, they make it enjoyable,” Kevin says. “Everyone works well together — there’s great camaraderie. You know that someone has your back and that you’re never on your own.”
Since having kids, the couple works opposite schedules to avoid child care costs. Currently, Kevin works full time and Jenni is per diem. They haven’t yet worked a shift together, but look forward to carpooling when the kids are a little older.
