June 2, 1956 - June 2, 2008

Happy Anniversary to Carl and Esther. My second brother Carl and his wife Esther have been married for 52 years. They tied the knot at the Catholic Church in Burketsville, Ohio on June 2, 1956. Esther grew up in Ansonia, Ohio which is in Darke County near Greenville, Ohio, the county seat. Esther's father had fought in Germany in World War I. Carl and Esther met before he joined the Air Force in 1951. In the Air Force Carl became a plane navigator in the planes that do refueling missions in the air. I don't remember where Carl began his Air Force stint but he ended it at a post in New Mexico in 1955. So when Carl returned to Russia, Ohio he proposed to Esther and they planned their wedding for June 2, 1956. Well, again my sister Mary and I were chosen to be in the wedding party. Mary Ellen is standing next to Esther's sister Lucille and I am standing next to Carl and my eldest brother Paul. I remember that the girls were in spring rainbow colors: Mary, yellow, Lucille, lilac and myself in pink. We carried white carnations and we had little flat hats with veils that matched the color of our dresses. Esther wore a very beautiful lace gown with high color and fingertip sleeves. I think her dress was something of a take off on Princess Grace's wedding dress. If you are old enough, you can remember the beautiful lace gown that Grace Kelly wore in April of 1956 to marry Prince Rainier of Monaco. My two brothers each wore a tux that had a white sport coat and a pink carnation. Hmmmm....that makes me think of that old Marty Robbins country hit that goes like this: a white sport coat and a pink carnation, I'm all dressed up for the dance. This wedding was another all day affair. Wedding mass followed by photos and breakfast. Then lunch for a few chosen guests which was followed by driving around in the decorated wedding cars blowing horns in the neighboring towns. Then wedding supper and dance for literally hundreds followed by midnight lunch. I think the wedding couple left on their honeymoon around midnight heading towards Indianapolis, IN to begin their wedding trip to Roswell, New Mexico where Carl had been stationed in the Air Force. I remember in particular three things about this wedding. First, it was very, very cold. Not a typical June day in Ohio. Second, I had a great time at the evening dance because I got to dance with some boys! And third, when Carl and Esther returned from their honeymoon they each had one very well tanned arm. Why? Because this was before the advent of air-conditioning in cars.So they each had spent a week with one arm hanging out the open car window on the long drive to New Mexico and back. Well, time has passed and Carl and Esther now have four grown children who are all married and live near Russia, Ohio or Bradford, Ohio. They also have sixteen grandchildren and one great grandchild. They have truly been blessed with a long and happy marriage. So I wish them Happy Anniversary!