Golden celebrations for Somerset Park couple
Environmental activists and Somerset Park couple, Heather and Graham Cairns, celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary recently.
A CHANCE meeting at a London pub grew into an adventure-filled love that would last for over five decades for Somerset Park couple, Heather (72) and Graham (81) Cairns. Last Friday they celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary.
The Cairns met at the Overseas Visitors Club in Earls Court, London in February 1964. Both Heather and Graham were out celebrating with friends at the time. As they were in the process of leaving the pub, Graham and his friend asked Heather to take them on a tour through London, and thinking that they would forget about the request in the morning, she reluctantly agreed.
The next morning, however, Heather, who was a nursing student at the time, was surprised when the duo showed up at her nursing home. Graham, who was part of the Tanganyika (now Tanzania) police force, was studying personnel management when they met.
Soon Graham began courting Heather, and in August of that year he proposed.
“She’s always been an exceptionally beautiful woman. At the time I knew I just had to get to know her,” he said.
The couple was married on 11 December, 1965 in Empangeni, KwaZulu-Natal. On her wedding day, Heather wore a veil that had been passed down in her family for many generations since 1684.
Two years later, they celebrated the birth of their first-born, Jean. They would later move to Lesotho. While there, the couple’s second daughter, Lyn, was born in 1970. However, due to the state of emergency in Lesotho, Heather had to travel to Bloemfontein for the birth. Graham had been stationed in Maseru as a member of the Lesotho Mounted Police until 1971.
They emigrated to Durban, South Africa before finally settling in La Lucia in 1975. In 2003, they moved to the Somerset Valley Estate. The couple have two grandchildren.
Since Graham retired in 1999, the Ciarns have been highly involved in the community, especially in environmental work. Both were involved in the uMhlanga branch of the Wildlife and Environment Society of South Africa (WESSA). Graham was chairman for over three years. In 2001, the couple also became involved in various environmental impact assessments (EIAs) that have been carried out in the area. They have also trained as guides for the Hawaan Forest.
What’s more, the couple have also served on the Somerset Park Home Owners’ Association board. Graham was involved in the La Lucia Neighbourhood Watch as well as the Somerset Park and La Lucia Community policing forums.
When asked what their recipe for success was for a good and long-lasting marriage, both agreed on communication and mutual trust. “If you don’t communicate you might as well be ships that pass in the night,” said Heather.
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