Hi Friends! Alison here!

As part of Capture Thirteen, I document love stories over and over again but this one is my favorite. My parents celebrated 38 years of marriage on April 17, 2020, during a pandemic and statewide shelter in place. So when my mom asked me to capture this moment in time for them… how could I say no. So I helped my mom put together a semi-surprise sunset dinner for my dad because let’s face it, my dad totally knew we were up to something! 😂

Of course, right before their anniversary dinner my dad injured his arm and we had to match his new pink bandage to his shirt, but with a little curbside pick-up, hard sought after flowers, and a front yard picnic at sunset they celebrated 38 years together. I couldn’t share these pictures with you without sharing their story, so here is their story as told by my mom.

“Our story began in the late summer of 1981. I had been widowed in early 1980 and Harrison had been widowed later that same year. I guess you could say our attraction to each other was born after much weeping and pain. We lived in the same area and attended the same church. He had two little girls and I had no children. In the late summer of ’81, he asked me if I would be interested in going to the amusement park Six Flags with him and his daughters. I wasn’t sure if he was asking me on a date or if he just needed someone to help with the girls! ( 😂 ) Either way, I decided I would go. A few days after the Six Flags invitation he asked if he could pick me up at my workplace and take me to lunch. So we went to the Beef Coral for an extended lunch where we talked about a number of things and he confessed he was really wanting a date! So now, 38 years later, a few more amusement park trips and raising not just two girls but four girls, we celebrate our wedding anniversary during a quarantine to a pandemic called COVID-19. We have faced many challenges and I’m sure we’ll continue to face more. For reasons we do not understand, God allowed the circumstances of our lives and He brought us together in His plan as He had seen all along. The Bible tells us, His ways are higher than our own and that weeping may endure for the night but joy comes in the morning. To those who are facing difficulties and pain, I encourage you to remember, the darkest hour is just before the dawn.” -Joan.