View All

Top Jobs


Latest featured videos from OxfordPress.com

Article Tools

E-mail this page Print this page

E-mail Newsletter

Keep up with local news and get breaking news alerts with our e-mail newsletter See Sample | Privacy Policy

Share

Del.icio.us
Digg
Facebook
Furl
Google
Reddit
Stumbleupon
Y! MyWeb

79-year-old bride: 'He's just a keeper'

By Rick McCrabb

Columnist

Saturday, November 22, 2008

Two o'clock can't get here soon enough for Pauline Sorrell.

"Today (Nov. 22)," she said, "is the day."

And not because of the football game in Columbus.

Sorrell's Middletown home has been transformed into a wedding chapel. The living room furniture has been replaced by more than 40 folding tables, a podium has been set up for the Rev. Eric Newell, pastor of Breiel Boulevard Church of God, and the food and flowers have been ordered.

Pauline is getting married.

Again.

Sixty-four years after she said "I do" the first time.

Pauline, 79, and 85-year-old Bob Miller, who was married for 57 years until his wife died on Christmas Day 2002, are getting married after a three-year courtship.

Say it together, in your best Marty Brennaman impersonation, "Ain't love grand."

"At our age," Bob said, "it's worth more than that."

Not to be outdone, Pauline said: "Now, I have someone who can push me out of bed every morning."

Ironically, Bob and Pauline — and their spouses — used to vacation in Florida, and they knew each other through their longtime associations with local veterans' groups.

One day three years ago, Bob and Pauline bought raffle tickets at the VFW for dinner at O'Charley's. They agreed if either won, they'd take the other to dinner.

Why dine alone, right?

Cupid stuck his arrow in the drum and pulled out Pauline's ticket. They went to dinner, and the years melted away.

The conversation lasted three hours.

When it was over, Bob asked: "May I see you again?"

One date led to another to another and another. Finally, after checking with his son, Bob asked Pauline to marry him.

Then she asked her two sons.

A lot changes as you age, and one of them is who you ask if you can get married.

They both have signed prenuptial agreements.

"What's Pauline's is hers and what's mine is mine," said Bob, a Marine who spent 27 months overseas during World War II and later worked at AK Steel Corp. frontrunner Armco.

When asked what marriage means, they used words such as commitment, warm feelings, togetherness and companionship.

No wonder their first marriages lasted a combined 111 years.

They won't have that much time together, of course. Still, they realize, one day together is worth more than years apart.

They're seniors whose feelings are fresher than cut flowers. And don't expect them to wilt.

"She's so intelligent, so understanding," he said.

"He's just a keeper," she said. "We are so blessed. We have a lot of life to live."

For Bob and Pauline Miller, Life II begins today.

Contact this columnist at (513) 705-2842 or rmccrabb@coxohio.com.

OxfordPress.com:

Copyright 2009 Oxford Press. All rights reserved.

By using OxfordPress.com, you accept the terms of our visitor agreement and privacy policy. You may wish to note our other business policies.

This website is ACAP-enabled