THE loving couple, Rod and Rose Buckley, celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary on Saturday, 17 December.
They knew about each other for a short time before they officially met during a game of badminton. “She had lovely legs,” laughed Rod. He asked her out and their first official date was at the movies.
“After that it went pretty quickly,” said Rose. Rod popped the question six months later and 18 months later they exchanged their wedding vows at the Highlands Anglican Church.
The couple skipped their honeymoon and instead packed up their lives in Zimbabwe and moved down to Port Elizabeth, where they lived for five years. When their first child, Craige, was eight months old, they moved to Durban and had their second child, Samantha. They are now the proud grandparents of four.
Rod and Rose were avid tennis players and were active members of the New Germany tennis club for many years.
“We have done quite a lot in our years together. We had a boat which we took to Inanda Dam and also took our children camping as often as we could. We first camped in tents and later upgraded to a caravan. I remember the one night we heard a voice saying, “Dad, dad, I’m getting wet,” and telling them to go back to bed, only to later realise they were being washed away in their tent by the rain,” added Rod.
Their favourite place to travel to is the Drakensberg and the couple look forward to spending some time there together in late January next year. “We were going to have a really quiet anniversary this year and let it go by unnoticed, but our church family will be celebrating this moment with us by holding a braai,” said Rod.
For new couples, Rod and Rose imparted a small piece of advice, information they said has helped them remain solid for 50 years. “Work on your relationship. There will be give and take from both sides. Spend time together and really get to know the person you are with,” they said.
