The Bozeman Lodge is holding its Valentine's Sweetheart Dinner to celebrate couples who have been together for 50+ years. I speak with some couples who share their secrets to a long-lasting marriage.
Gib and Jean Lehman have been married for 68 years. They were teenagers when they first met and were engaged on Valentine's Day.
“For the moment, it was just Jean and me. I reached for her right hand. Will you marry me? That's what I asked. She said yes," Gib Leham said.
Jean says she and Gib were set up by his sister and began to write each other letters. They first got together at a skating rink.
“Gib came up to me and asked me to skate and I told him the same thing. I don't know. I've never been on skates. He said, Would you like some ice cream? And that was the downfall for him,” Jean Lehman said.
They say the secret to a happy marriage is thinking about your spouse before yourself.
“My experience, it seems like when you start thinking of just me, me, me, that's when things fall apart,” Jean said.
The Lehmans aren't the only ones celebrating a marriage milestone. Mary Lou and Paul Aicher have been married for 74 years. Mary Lou was just 17 years old when she married Paul. Their secret to a happy marriage is to make sure you are ready for the commitment.
“Make sure that's what you want and that's the guy that you're really wanting to spend the rest of your life with,” Mary Lou said.
Even after 74 years, they're still happy to be together.
“We've got each other and that's what counts,” Mary Lou said.
Bozeman Lodge has hosted a sweetheart dinner for several years and is excited to celebrate these long-lasting couples.
General Manager of the Bozeman Lodge, Andrew Steighner said, “We wanted to do this, particularly at the Bozeman Lodge because we want to honor those in the Bozeman community, especially all those lovebirds that have been out there and been married for so long. So we want to honor those people."
Even after spending dozens of Valentine's Days together, Gib and Jean still remember it as their special day.
“It's always a day of remembrance," Jean said.
"It's a fun day to remember her. The day I proposed to her,” Gib said.
Gib shares a poem he wrote for his wife:
