N.W.T. couple welcomes 'showers of blessings' on 77th anniversary

A couple from Fort McPherson, N.W.T., celebrated77 years together this past weekend.

Peter and Mary Kay were marriedon July 10, 1939, in a ceremony with two other couples.

"It was actually his sister who told him he should marry my mom, because he would be taken care of for the rest of his life,"says their daughterDianneBaxter.

"My dad says when he saw her he was like, 'Yeah, OK.'"

He went to his father, who talked to Mary's father.

"When she was first told, she didn't want to get married, but it was an arranged marriage. She said 'I didn't love him at first but I learned to love him over the years.'"

'Whatever you had, you shared'

Peter is 100 and Mary is 96. Theystilllive in their own home and their children take turns caring for them.Marystill cooks for neighbouringelderswhen she can.

"They work very well together and they both have the same mannerisms," saysBaxter.

"They had rules in the household and we respected the rules.They always told us you have to try to help people in the communitybecause that's the way my dad was raised and the way my mom was raised, is that whatever you had, you shared."

The rules included sharing of harvested foodwith elders, the sick and other families, in that order.Baxter says when her father deliveredfoodto eldersthey would wishhim a long andhappy life, and so he believes he owes his health and longevity to the community values he was taught.

Traditions passed on

Baxter says the family continues the tradition.

"Whenever we go out berry-picking, we always use our berries to help other families in times of need, whether it's single mothers who can't get out, or when someone passes away in the Gwich'in settlement area, we make contributions toward the feast with the traditional foods that we harvest off of the land."

High waters closed the ferry last weekend, keeping some family members from attending the anniversary potluck. But rain onthe morning of the anniversary celebrationwas appropriate, says Baxter,as her mother recalls it rainedthe morning of herwedding daybut cleared up in the evening.

"She always said 'Rain is a good thing;it's showers of blessings.'"