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Tuesday May 15, 2007 Edition
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Sharing Memories With Wilma And Gordon Brown 90 Years Old Of Bristol

Pictured above: L to R:  Gordon Brown recently turned 90, Wilma will be 90 May 21st. Happy 90th Birthday the Brown couple.
photo provided
Pictured above: L to R: Gordon Brown recently turned 90, Wilma will be 90 May 21st. Happy 90th Birthday the Brown couple.

Tuesday May 15, 2007

By Ann Kensek

    When Wilma Spaulding and Gordon Brown attended high school they never imagined they’d spend the rest of their lives together.  This year they are celebrating 67 years of marriage.  Gordon recently turned 90, and Wilma will be 90 on the 21st of this month.  Their love, respect and contentment with each other is clear.

    After attending high school in Richmond, Gordon went to embalming school and returned to Richmond to work for his father.  Wilma went to Rutland Business School to learn secretarial skills and took a job at the Richmond Coop Creamery.  The two began dating and on August 3, 1940 they were married. They have four children: Brenda Lathrop, Brian, Craig and Dwayne.  Dwayne lives in California, and the other three live locally.  The also have two grandchildren, one great grandchild and another on the way.

    Gordon was a funeral director, working for his father until 1945, when he and Wilma bought a funeral business in Bristol.  In 1954 they bought another one in Vergennes and ran them both, with Wilma as the secretary/bookkeeper.  They retired at 69.

    Reflecting on their lives, they expressed gratitude.  Wilma,  one of four  siblings grew up in Huntington and feels she had a very good childhood.  Gordon who was one of six children, said his parents kept him busy doing many different things, so he learned a lot.  They reminisced about how Gordon’s family had a few cows and he would peddle milk with a cart while he was in high school.  They sold the milk for 7 cents a quart.

    Over the years they have enjoyed time with their family and friends.  For a number of years they spent three months at a time in Florida with local friends as well as some from Newport.    They have also enjoyed trips to California to visit family out there.  They enjoyed two weeks a year at their camp on Lake Champlain and numerous family picnics and gatherings at their cabin in the woods of Lincoln.

    “Life has been pretty good.” said Wilma.

    “We’re fortunate,” adds Gordon.  “Three of our kids live in the area, and give us lots of attention and look after us. And we’ve had good trips out to California to see our other son.”

    They agree that being married has created some of their best memories. They enjoyed many of the same hobbies and interests, including golf and traveling. They share an obvious joy in their family. They play skip-bo every night and have for years, keeping track of who wins.  “We’re about even now,” said Wilma, to which Gordon agreed.

    Their advice for a good marriage?  “Work hard to always respect the other person’s opinion,” said Gordon.

    “We’ve always been optimistic, looking at the sunny side,” said Wilma. “We’ve been putting up with each other for almost 67 years,” she said, jokingly, to her husband.

     “It’s never been about ‘putting up with’,” he fondly replied.  Her smile said it all.

 


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