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As she approached the starting line of a summer 5K run in the Twin Cities on June 28, Maren Miller ’18 had no idea she would be racing against her doppelganger. 

It wasn’t until the St. Olaf College alum was about to leave the packet pickup table, when a volunteer stopped her to ask her which Maren Miller she was, that she learned of the duplicate.  

“I was totally shocked, like, what are the odds of two people with the same exact name being in the same race?” she recalls. “I thought my mind couldn’t be more blown, but I had to find out who this person was, so I decided to do a quick Google search. After going down a social media rabbit hole, I found a Maren Miller who plays volleyball at St. Olaf. I was like, seriously, there’s not only another Maren Miller, but she’s also an Ole? That’s just so wacky!”

The elder Miller reached out to Maren Miller ‘27 over Instagram, and the two arranged to meet up after the race. 

“It truly is a small world,” the younger Miller, a double major in Quantitative Economics and Nordic Studies, says. “You don’t meet many people with Maren as a first name, especially ones that pronounce it the way we do! I was doubly shocked to find out that we both are from St. Olaf.” 

The two ended up meeting at the finish line, where Miller ‘18 had placed first overall with a personal best of 19:45 (in her second race back after breaking her leg earlier in the year). Miller ‘27, who ran with friends and fellow Oles Michaela Dooley ‘27 and Kyra Narum ‘27, also hit her goal of a personal record, 27:40, and placed second in her age division. 

“We chatted about the dorms and about how crazy it was that we were both Oles,” Miller ‘27 said. “I could tell [the other Miller] was a very motivated and driven person, and the embodiment of a true Ole.”

The moment left a lasting impression on both women. 

“I think we all share a value system at St. Olaf,” Miller ‘18, now a special education teacher with Minneapolis Public Schools and a staff member at Wood Lake Nature Center in Richfield, says. “We care for one another, and we’re always excited to show up and cheer each other on. It’s something you don’t always find in the outside world, but I’ve found it in the running community; and so it totally feels right to find another Maren Miller who is also an Ole—who is determined and kind and shows up for a fun challenge—right here.”

For Miller ‘27, the encounter deepened her sense of connection to the Ole network. 

“I have had some connections with past alumni, but never like this,” she says. “I feel like I just made an amazing connection that I hope to foster in the future—Maren, if you’re seeing this, I would love to get coffee with you sometime!”

The Maren Millers of St. Olaf now share more than just a name — they share a story of serendipitous symmetry.

“Only at Olaf,” Miller ‘18 jokes.