Brandon Twp.- Marv and Marilyn Featherston are about to accomplish a feat that few couples do? on May 8, they will celebrate 60 years of marriage.
‘The best thing is, we lasted 60 years,? Marv says. ‘We’re proud of that, because not too many do that these days. The divorce rate is pitiful. You have to give and take and not enough people do that.?
Marv, who was born and raised here, met Marilyn after he returned home in May 1946 after serving in the Navy Seabees (CB- construction battalion) in Japan during World War II. Marilyn was 16 and had moved to the township while Marv was gone. She was a good friend of his sister, who showed Marilyn pictures of her brother.
‘I thought he was cute,? she said. ‘He came home and we really connected.?
‘I thought she was a skinny little runt,? laughs Marv, then: ‘She was a nice girl.?
They began dating, often going to the Dixie Spot and later, Ted’s Trailer, drive-in restaurants. She says she made him take her to her junior prom, and they would go to movies featuring stars like Lana Turner and Alan Ladd.
‘Alan Ladd was my favorite, after Marv,? says Marilyn, and both she and Marv laugh.
Marilyn’s parents moved to Kansas City, Mo. her senior year of high school and she stayed with Vern and Grace Borst here to finish school, but then moved to Kansas City. They would write to each other nearly every day. And then one day, Marv wrote a letter to Marilyn’s father, asking for her hand.
At Christmastime, when she returned to Michigan for a visit, he gave her the ring while they were ‘smooching.?
They wed on May 8, 1948 at her parents? home in Kansas City, with 40 people in attendance. There was cake and ice cream.
Their honeymoon was the trip from Kansas City to Michigan. Marv had bought the hardware store with his father, Harry, in Ortonville a year before and had to get back to work.
The young couple rented an apartment on Bald Eagle Lake and their first child, daughter Marva Lee, was born a year after they were married. The family then rented a house on Church Street and daughter Marlene Sue was born in 1951, followed by son Mark Lynn in 1955. After four years in the Church Street home, the Featherstons purchased it for $7,500.
Marv and Marilyn agree that over the years, the biggest challenge in their marriage was their hardware store and they were also busy doing community work. Marv served in various capacities, including as township treasurer, assistant fire chief, on the village council and on the fire board. For a few years when the kids were small, the couple also owned the Village Dry Goods store. Marilyn was primarily a stay-at-home mother, but worked at the hardware store when needed. They were also involved in the Masons, Order of the Eastern Star, and bowling.
‘We were running a business and needed to be involved in the community and that’s what we did,? recalled Marilyn. ‘It was our life.?
Now, Marilyn is very busy as a member of the Ortonville United Methodist Church. Marv sold the hardware store 15 years ago and drives vehicles for Simms Chevrolet on an on-call basis. They have different hobbies. Marilyn notes that Marv likes hunting, fishing, and the outdoors, and she does not.
But, Marv explains, ‘She does what she wants to do, and I do what I want to do, and we’re happy that way. You need to respect each other and be concerned about what each other wants to do. We have to go along with each other and it makes for a good marriage.?
‘We do give and take and we are there for one another,? said Marilyn. ‘When we need each other, he will help me and I will help him.?
Marv, 82, and Marilyn, 78, have six grandchildren and four great-grandchildren.
Marv advises couples seeking a long-lasting marriage like theirs to never give up.
‘Work things out,? he said. ‘Don’t throw your hands up and say, ‘the heck with it.? It’s bad for the family and the kids.?
Marilyn agreed.
‘Continue to choose to love each other? it’s the greatest of all things? love. We are each other’s best friend.?