The couple met in 1951, when they were both students at Rhodes University, in Grahamstown.
Patricia was studying a BA in music and English, while Adrian was furthering his studies in science.
The two started off as friends and later started dating.
Patricia said it was Adrian’s intelligence that won her over, as well as his looks, while his dance style was the cream on top.
“My husband continued to study for 11 years after we got married, then he got his doctorate in science,” said Patricia.
Adrian said Patricia’s beauty and cheek got him hooked.
“She looked as if she owned the whole world,” he said with a smile.
They were married in 1956 and, soon after that, Adrian took up a lecturing position in Zimbabwe, from where they returned to South Africa in 1981.
When they were in Zimbabwe, Patricia taught music and English in Harare, while Adrian became the dean of the faculty of science at the University of Zimbabwe.
He said he was the first person to give a lecture in the science department when the university opened in 1952.
In 1962, the couple moved to America, where Adrian was doing research in organic chemistry at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), in Boston.
On their return to South Africa, Adrian got a job as a consultant for mining company Rio Tinto, in Johannesburg, and Patricia opened a music school.
Asked what they love most about each other, Adrian responded by saying: “Patricia is beautiful and she gave me four fabulous kids.”
Patricia said Adrian is a family man and that they have always been a team; solving problems together.
When asked for their recipe for a long, healthy marriage, Patricia said respecting and trusting one another is vital.
Adrian said if you make a commitment you must keep it, and if you won’t keep it, you should not make it.
Adrian and Patricia love travelling together and dancing.
They have four children: Jenny Ceaton-Smith, Lianne Burns, Rose Mortimer and John Eve, and eight grandchildren.
The couple celebrated their anniversary with family and friends.
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