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Meet the 49ers

‘Hip hip hoorah!' Local couples celebrate their 60th wedding anniversaries together

By Alandra Johnson / The Bulletin

Published: October 06. 2009 4:00AM PST

Sixty years ago, postwar prosperity was beginning to take hold of America. Harry Truman was president. West Germany was established as a country. And “Some Enchanted Evening” was one of the most popular songs.

And 1949 is very dear to several local couples because it's the year they got married. They celebrate their anniversaries together each year, as they have been doing for the past 20 or so years.

Sixty years of marriage is quite an accomplishment. Of currently married women in 2001, fewer than 6 percent had reached their 50th anniversary, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. The census doesn't keep track of 60th anniversaries.

Bend resident Betty Kahl, 83, sees 60 years together as reason to celebrate.

“I think in this day and age, being married 60 years is an accomplishment.”

Kahl says they met while living in Sunriver in the late 1980s. They found it a great coincidence that so many couples married in the same year would end up living so close to one another.

They quickly named the group The 49ers, Kahl says the group started off with about six couples and swelled to about 10 at one point. Sadly, in recent years, they have lost a few members, says Kahl.

Ever since that first meeting in Sunriver, they have made an effort to get together every year.

For their 50th anniversary, they splurged and took a trip to Victoria, British Columbia, for several days. Another year they went to a show at the Hult Center in Eugene.

Bettie MacDonald says sometimes they talk about how they all met, but the topic of their weddings doesn't come up in conversation too much.

The group now consists of five couples and three individuals who have each lost a spouse. This year they met for dinner at Touchmark at Mt. Bachelor Village in Bend, where two of the couples reside. They managed to get together for their 60th despite the fact that a few members moved away to Medford or Brookings.

“This seemed to be a special year,” said Kahl.

While the couples come from different backgrounds, they share some commonalities of the era. Most had traditional, formal weddings in a church. Their wedding photos are black and white. Most of the men fought in World War II or Korea.

Kahl says most of The 49ers started out as couples right after the war and began fairly modestly. “None of us had two cents to rub together.”

Group members have experienced some health troubles but continue to make it a priority to see each other each year.

Kahl wonders how many couples today will be able to celebrate their 60th anniversary.

MacDonald says, “I think it's special to be married all these years.” Whenever she tells people about their lengthy marriage, she says people are amazed. Last year, while in Trader Joe's, the cashier discovered how long they had been married. “Before I knew it, they were bringing us a big bouquet of flowers.”

Ellie Luba, who at age 79 is one of the youngest members of the group, says she thanks the good Lord that she and husband, Herb, 80, have made it to their 60th. She just says, “C'mon, keep it going. Definitely let's try to hit 61!” She met her husband when they were in high school. They married in a formal wedding in San Francisco.

“We're as happy now as we were day one. If you marry your best friend, that's usually what happens.”

Luba, who continues to live in Sunriver, says if they found any other couples married in 1949, they would be happy to add them to the mix. Each year, she looks forward to good talks, good laughs and, she hopes, good food.

“It's something to say, ‘Hip hip hoorah!'” said Luba.

Alandra Johnson can be reached at 541-617-7860 or at ajohnson@bendbulletin.com.

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