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The Kitchen Table

We Eloped Fifty-four Years Ago

7 years ago

We eloped 54 years ago today. We met our senior year in college when a classmate took our group to the local radio station where he worked to use their equipment to record a semester project radio contest presentation. He he consulted the DJ on the air about selecting background music. That DJ, new in town and on campus, saw me, asked him for my number, and called me on campus that night for a coffee date. I was distracted and did not want to talk to him because the main building on campus was burning down. Fire engines from everywhere were trying to put out the fire in freezing cold weather and the water they used froze quickly. I was graduating in 6 months, and feared all records were being burned too. What would that mean for all of us?

We eloped 2 1/2 years later (my parents were dead, siblings scattered around the world, no money for a wedding, and his grandparents who raised him could not travel to our location). We have had 3 kids, who have provided us with a son and daughter-in-law and 3 wonderful grandsons, the most recent arriving 3 weeks ago. We have lived in the Midwest, East Coast and now in California. We can't believe it has been 54 years. We also can't believe we are those old people in the pictures of us holding our new grandson!

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Comments (23)

Annie Deighnaugh
7 years ago
Congratulations. A lovely story of a wonderful life.
lindaohnowga
7 years ago
Congrats and Happy Anniversary.
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Patti, it wasn't exactly will power. You get real practical when you are married and have very little money. I finished up teaching the school year for two reasons. First, this was a rural high school 15 miles from the city, and they may well have not been able to find a teacher for the rest of the year as this was an era of teacher shortages. I did not want to do that to my students. Moreover, I would be finishing my masters with the summer classes at the university in the city, or I would have had to start over. I did not want to do that and we looked forward to the greater income I could earn with a graduate degree. We are both financially practical people. When I finally joined my DH, I had $10 in my savings account after all the summer tuition and a final visit to the family dentist!
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Congratulations to both of you. Obviously you each made a good choice! My DH and I were married only seven months ahead of you. We're still going strong too. Actually, I think *strong-er* than some earlier years.
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Loved the pictures. I still haven't figured out how to post. I did everything you told me to but it didn't work for me. I guess I'll just have to find someone to show me. Trouble is, I don't have grandkids....I'll have to borrow someone else's.
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Such a nice story, and congratulations on 50 years! I didn't realize Michener's Hawaii has been around that long. I loved that book. Good choice! :-)
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marilyn_c
7 years ago
Happy anniversary!
morz8 - Washington Coast
7 years ago
last modified: 7 years ago
Happy Anniversary! It sounds like you both made good choices.

Our anniversary was last week, 48 years. I said the same, we aren't old enough to have been married that long ;0)
greenshoekitty
7 years ago
Wow! What a great story. May you have many more years together, and good health to enjoy those years.
chisue
7 years ago
Congratulations! (Guess it turned out 'OK', huh? LOL) Thanks for telling us the backstory.

We should start a "How We Met" thread.
Fun2BHere
7 years ago
last modified: 7 years ago
Lovely story! How wonderful to have enjoyed your shared life for so many years.
clearwaters
7 years ago
Enjoy the day. This past January was the 54th anniversary of our elopement.
happy2b…gw
7 years ago
Congratulations on 54 years married. Thanks for sharing your story. Life is amazing, isn't it?
dedtired
7 years ago
I love your story.
pekemom
7 years ago
Congratulations!.... we will be married 49 years this month.
georgysmom2
7 years ago
Congratulations! We celebrated 60 years yesterday. The years keep flying by faster and faster don't they.
yeonassky
7 years ago
Congratulations on the new baby of your family and a very huge happy anniversary. The grandbaby sounds like a wonderful way to mark your 54 years together.
Rose Pekelnicky
7 years ago
Happy anniversary. How lucky you are to still have each other.
JustDoIt
7 years ago
cooper8828
7 years ago
Happy anniversary!
User
7 years ago
A lovely story! HAPPY ANNIVERSARY!
glenda_al
7 years ago
katlan
7 years ago
Happy anniversary. Many more happy, healthy years. Great story.
sheilajoyce_gw
Original Author
7 years ago
Chisue, I love hearing everyone's story of how they met their spouse. Some really funny or endearing stories usually ensue. It's quite entertaining.
PRO
Anglophilia
7 years ago
Congratulations, and Happy Anniversary!
Texas_Gem
7 years ago
The stories life is made of huh? Congrats!!
Lukki Irish
7 years ago
last modified: 7 years ago
Congrats! What a great and inspiring post to read, thank you for sharing!!

I met a man at the pet store the other day, he was a real talker and shared that it was his anniversay. He was talking about how his wife fell in love with a dog he’d found (and rescued) after it was tossed from a car! He proudly boasted, “yup, my bride and I have been married 61 years today”. After I got into the car it dawned on me, that they had married in the same year I was born!

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