Published: September 14, 2006 10:03 pm      

2 brothers celebrating their 60th wedding anniversaries

ASHLAND — Communication is the key to a long and successful marriage, according to two brothers and their wives who are celebrating their 60th wedding anniversaries this year.

William H. Lockwood, 83, of Ironton, met his wife-to-be, Wilma, at Black’s Skating Rink in Ashland in 1946. Lockwood had served in the U.S. Army during World War II, stationed in the wilds of New Guinea, Australia and The Philippines. It was a quick courtship; they met in March and were married in September.

His brother, John, 80, of Ashland, met his wife the same year in Mokas Restaurant. He was preparing to enter the U.S. Army and his future wife, Roma, was a teen. The two kept in touch and ended up marrying in 1946 after a three-year relationship.

The weddings were two weeks apart.

Neither had a big, expensive wedding.

William and Wilma married in church with just those who were standing up for them looking on.

“I didn’t ask for a big wedding,” Wilma said. “With my dad out of work for five years, we didn’t have the money. I didn’t want it.”

John and Roma’s wedding was small, too, and at the parsonage of their church.

The brothers have their work history in common, too.

William retired from Armco after 40 years of service where he was a supervisor at the Amanda Blast Furnace. He also volunteered for Habitat for Humanity for 11 years. With the exception of a couple of years living in Michigan, John spent his career at Armco, too, working almost 39 years as a crane operator.

Both have two children, a boy and a girl.

All four have been close friends over the years and enjoyed boating together. The brothers also have taken some fishing trips to Canada together.

They also all agree that keeping a marriage working requires work.

“Talk out everything,” William said. “Don’t fly off the handle and do something or buy something without talking about it and planning.”

“We’ve never had any trouble,” Wilma said.

“All marriages have ups and downs,” John added. “We haven’t had any real trauma, no separations. She helps me and I help her. She’s a good mother and we think we did a good job. We’ve had no hardships.”

Roma added that communication is key.

“Don’t go to bed mad and be sure to tell each other often you love each other,” she said.

LEE WARD can be reached at lward@dailyindependent.com or (606) 326-2661.