Pinetown couple share a special bond
Yvonne and Doug Cooper celebrated their 64th blessed wedding anniversary on 1 February.
IN a small male-dominated town, a man was forced to be on his ‘A’ game to win the heart of the woman of his dreams.
For Doug Cooper, it was his charm and kindness that secured the love of his life as after 64 years of marriage, they are still happy and content with one another.
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In celebration of the month of love, Doug and Yvonne shared their love story.
Even though they both grew up in South Africa, the love birds met in Brocken Hill, Northern Rhodesia, now known as Zambia.
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The Pinetown couple met at a sports field as they both loved sport and played hockey, baseball and softball.
Doug said he went to Northern Rhodesia to work at the railway lines while Yvonne had just moved in the area with her mother.
“We stayed in a small town where women were out numbered. We used to go to dances and I would travel on my bicycle. Yvonne would sit on the crossbar as I did not have a car,” said Doug.
The idea of getting married was a mutual one as they were planning to visit Doug’s parents in South Africa.
“We had both arranged leave at our work places, so we decided to just get married and used our trip to South Africa as our honeymoon,” said Yvonne.
The couple tied the knot at a church in Brocken Hill on 1 February 1957.
Having lots of laughs has helped the couple get through the few dark patches in their lives.
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“Marriage is something you work on and it grows on you. Being able to weather the bad times together definitely makes your bond stronger,” said Doug.
Yvonne said her husband is a considerate man. “We just clicked from the beginning. Doug is loving in a lot of ways. We have had many good times and experiences as we both love to travel and enjoy the outdoors,” she said.
Doug revealed that Yvonne’s beauty attracted him to her.
“She was such a beautiful lady and still is. There was a lot of competition but we ended up together,” he said.
When asked what their recipe for a lasting relationship is, Doug smiled and said, “we complete each other.”
The couple has five children, eight grandchildren and five great-grandchildren.
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