Q&A with Roy and Lucy Wiard

Residence: Perry

Occupation: Retired

Q: It’s quite an event you just celebrated -- what was it?

Roy: Seventy-five years. Our 75th wedding anniversary.

Lucy: And I mean it was great. We celebrated one day early on August 23 with a big family dinner then went to church on Sunday (the actual anniversary date) and got quite a reception. Such a fuss! The days just pass and you don’t realize how many years have gone by, but you don’t think about it being such a big deal. But I guess it is.

Q: And how old are the two of you?

Roy: She’s 92 and I’m 93. We were 17 and 18 when we got married. We grew up in Moultrie, Georgia.

Q: So you married around 1940 at the beginnings of World War II?

Roy: Yeah. I went off to service after we had two children, our oldest son and daughter. I served in the Navy in the Atlantic going up and down the east coast to South America. I was discharged in ‘45 and we tried farming. Then I started “mechanicing” and ended up with Ryder Truck Rentals.

Q: That made Lucy one of the brides left home with kids during the war. What was that like?

Lucy: Two babies. It was like starting over when he left. Money was short but I’m grateful my mom and dad gave us a place to live and my teenage sisters loved our children. I was learning to be grown. The 1940s was a different time than now, that’s for sure.

Q: Were you childhood sweethearts?

Roy: No, we met about nine or 10 months before we married.

Q: Remember the first time you saw her?

Roy: We’d seen each other as kids, with our families, but when we really got started, that’s kind of an ugly story I guess.

Q: How’s that?

Roy: A good friend and I went to a prayer meeting and got girlfriends to go with us. We went in and I saw Lucy and we started talking and then gave her a ride home. When we hopped in the car, I put her in front seat with me and the other girl in the back seat. We went to Lucy’s house and had a pretty long talk. I don’t know what the other girl thought.

Lucy: My older sister was there, too. Roy and I had actually met before. My daddy farmed and was a preacher. He had brought Roy to our house before when we were younger.

Q: The big question: what’s the secret to 75 years of marriage?

Roy: That’s it -- no secrets.

Q: Is it 75 years “happily” married?

Lucy: Oh yes. We were raised on the farm with not much money, not much education. We learned how to work and how to make money stretch. We’d been with parents who stayed together and who served God. Longevity comes with a lot of hard work and determination. And we loved each other desperately.

Roy: And, of course, we were in church and our faith played a great part. When the Lord’s on your side, you don’t need another key to marriage.

Q: What’s been the biggest struggle?

Roy: I think her being at home during wartime with kids and me away at war.

Q: How did you get through it all?

Lucy: Just believing everything was going to turn out all right. I don’t remember being frightened about not having food or worried about too many things. I guess we just believed we could do anything we needed to. We were kids.

Roy: One thing I remember: she took a picture of our oldest daughter and son and sent them to me when I was in the service. There were some real hectic times I felt like everything was going wrong. I’d look at the picture and show them around to the boys on ship and it made my day. It made a difference. They all swore my daughter wasn’t a real person. They said she was so pretty she must be a doll.

Q: What was the greatest joy?

Lucy: I can tell you. It’s when I heard the train whistle blow in Thomasville, Georgia, at 2 o’clock in the morning one time and knew my husband was going to be on it coming home on leave. I didn’t get to see him long but I got to see him and knew he was alive.

Roy: I guess four different things: each time one of my children was born. That was a happy, happy time each time.

Q: How many kids?

Roy: Four. Four children, 12 grandchildren and 14 great-grandchildren.

Q: The two of you still in love?

Lucy: I am; I don’t know about him. He still makes my heart go pitter patter.

Roy: Oh yeah. Yeah, if I wasn’t I guess would I try to get out of it somehow. (Laughs and smiles.) No, I’d never trade her in.

Answers may have been edited for length and clarity. Compiled by Michael W. Pannell. Contact him at mwpannell@gmail.com.

This story was originally published September 1, 2015 at 3:48 PM with the headline "Q&A with Roy and Lucy Wiard ."