How Chatham and Ice Hockey Brought This Alumni Couple Together
Andrew Warhoftig Wilk and Madison Black Wilk pose for wedding portraits in Vail, CO. (Kimi D Photography)
When Madison Black Wilk ’20, OTD ’24, first met her now-husband, Andrew Warhoftig Wilk ’23, she didn’t try to ask him on a date. She tried to hire him for a job.
“I originally recruited him for coaching at my dad’s ice rink, because I wanted a break,” Madison said during a recent interview. “I was on the ice a lot, so I thought, ‘Perfect, this guy seems eager.’ So, I got his email to start. I didn’t even get his phone number.”
It was a seemingly innocuous start to a relationship that led to their marriage in December 2025 in Vail, CO. Andrew and Madison fell for each other, they said, not just because of their shared love of hockey or their mutual friends—it was also because they were both students at Chatham University.
Chatham “really gave me a lot as a student,” Andrew said. “I was able to meet so many friends. I ultimately found a full-time job and my wife from going to school there.”
Andrew, who’s originally from Dallas, TX, came to Chatham after playing two seasons of junior hockey in Canada. He majored in applied data science analytics.
“I have family that lives here, and all the educational opportunities the school had to offer lined up with what I was hoping to do,” he said. “I was eager to play college hockey as well.”
Madison, meanwhile, grew up near Pittsburgh and enrolled at Chatham for the health sciences, studying psychology before getting her Doctorate in Occupational Therapy degree.
Both played on the ice hockey teams at Chatham, and—coincidentally—they also both wore the number 20 on their jerseys. “I’m older, though, so I had it first,” Madison said.
Playing hockey at Chatham was “awesome,” she added. “We still have so many friendships and memories that pop up all the time. It’s fun to relive those days and connect with those people past college.”
“The [men’s ice hockey] program was fairly new when I first got to Chatham,” Andrew said. “We didn’t win a ton of games my first year, but by the time I reached my senior year, we had made playoffs back-to-back years and we were winning playoff games. On the personal side, I made so many friends and met people I’ll stay close with the rest of my life.”
With so much in common—a similar circle of friends, playing hockey, going to Chatham—Andrew and Madison said they found it ironic to have met over a casual drink during a night out with friends in Shadyside.
“There were crazy life connections that led us to each other,” she said.
“We became good friends pretty quickly,” Andrew said. “We have similar interests in activities and music. It was a quick fit, and it was easy to plan hangouts, because all our friends are friends with each other.”
Now that they’re out of school, they’re both working. Madison is an OT in pediatrics, working in schools to support children with developmental challenges and disabilities. Previously, she worked with the Mighty Penguins sled hockey team and had experience working with older populations, like helping her grandparents’ rehabilitation when they had strokes.
“It's just special to see the therapists treat everyone like their own family, and that's what caught me right away,” she said. “I want to help support people and lead people to the most meaningful life they can live, regardless of what they experienced.”
Andrew had a stint professional hockey for a stint before he returned to Pittsburgh to work at Merrill Lynch, the financial planning and investment firm where he’s worked for three years.
“I always knew I wanted to go into the financial world after college,” he said. “I think I naturally look at things through an analytical lens.
“I think the investment world is incredibly complicated,” Andrew added. “If you have someone who’s able to sit down with you and explain things, it becomes a lot easier.”
They’re also both part of the Chatham’s Alumni Association Board and are members of its Young Alumni Committee. This time, it was Andrew who recruited Madison to join him in working with the board.
“Our primary goal is to help bring together that network of recent graduates and put together events and other opportunities for people to get together and talk about their experiences at Chatham,” Andrew said.
“It’s cool to hear the different paths people went down after school,” Madison said. “This is exactly what the school needs to continue growing and bring back alumni.”
“Everyone has different backgrounds, and Chatham has changed a lot throughout the years, but I think we all find common ground in loving what the University gave to us,” he said.
“What I’ve always liked about Chatham is that we’re open to change, and Chatham has constantly evolved to fit what their students thought was most important at that point in time,” Andrew added. “I’m proud to go to a university that’s willing to listen to its students and do what it takes to be successful.”
This Valentine’s Day, spread the love with Chatham by considering making a gift to the University. Your support helps Chatham students. Learn more at chatham.edu/give.