Our People

It all began on a sunny day in 1936

• Howick and Pakuranga Times

OLD SCHOOL romance is still alive, and Howick couple Donald and Stella Fox can prove it as they get ready to celebrate their platinum (70th) wedding anniversary on Wednesday.

EVER LASTING LOVE: Donald and Stella Fox will celebrate their 70th anniversary this Wednesday. Times photo Wayne Martin.

It all began on a sunny day in England in 1936 in a small park when the two strangers’ eyes met; they say it was love at first sight.

“We saw each other and that was it. He was so handsome,” recalls Mrs Fox.

“We have always said if one of us was to pass on, that we’d never meet anyone else.

“We never had any doubts that we were meant for each other.”

And while now midway through their 90s, their love is as fresh and vibrant as if they were teenagers.  During our interview Mrs Fox pokes her tongue at her husband, a gesture that makes him laugh and squeeze her a tad tighter with affection.

“It’s been a wonderful 70 years, and I wish for 70 more,” says Mr Fox.

The pair remembers their wedding day at the St John Divine Church on June 4, 1938 like it was yesterday.

Mrs Fox says back in those days it was unusual to hold a reception outside, but they celebrated with family and friends in a quaint rose garden filled with roses.

And although there was no honeymoon to follow, they did go home to a new house.

Their deep affection for each other is obvious, the pair constantly laughing and sitting close – perhaps the success to the Howick couple’s long and happy life.

Mrs Fox says her husband has always made her laugh.

“I never get bored with Donald; we’ve always enjoyed each other’s company. He’s my best friend,” she says.

In fact the two have never been apart. The only time they can remember being separated is at the birth of their three children and even then Mr Fox visited every day.

When he became sick six years ago and had to move into the Lansdowne residential nursing home, Mrs Fox says she moved in too, she missed him so much.

“I couldn’t bear to think of him by himself,” says Mrs Fox.

The duo’s courtship was filled with long walks through the fields hand in hand. There was never a need to sneak around, they say.

“Donald has always been a gentleman and still is. He came to my door and waited for me,” says Mrs Fox of their courtship.

Although she says the marriage proposal was nothing fancy, Mr Fox’s classic romantic gesture down on his knees (only after permission from her father) is something she will never forget.

Watching their three children grow up and their four grandchildren and six greagrandchildren has made the couple realise how different relationships are nowadays.

Although having lived through war in England and having had near escapes of bombs exploding in the next street, they say life is more complex today.

“It was give and take back then; kids these days are getting all they want. There is a lot more take,” says Mrs Fox.

She says honesty and compromise are the key ingredients to a lasting marriage.

“Don’t be afraid to tell each other that you love them,” says Mrs Fox, a rule she lives by to this day.

But she says it’s OK to fight now and then.

“You’re bound to have words, it’d be a boring world otherwise,” she says.