Couple Married 76 Years Will Ring In 100th Birthdays Together

Living to 100 is a privilege not enjoyed by many, but being married more than three-quarters of that time is even more impressive.

John and Vera Peterson, of Freeport, Illinois, will celebrate their 77th wedding anniversary next month and hope they’ll both live as centenarians together.

They first met when Vera, initially a friend of John’s sister, was working on their family farm as a housekeeper. John was immediately “smitten” he tells the Freeport Journal-Standard   and soon the two were dating and then married. 

Not only has it been a long life, but it’s also been a good life, says Vera, who just celebrated her 100th birthday earlier this week.

“Our life has been mostly roses, but there are always thorns, but you have to reach past those thorns and come back to what the attraction was built on and stay with that,” Vera told the Journal-Standard. “It’s what holds you together.”

It’s that same positive outlook she credits for her and John’s longevity. John will turn 100 in March.

The great-great-grandparents say that above all else, love, positivity and keeping fit has kept them going this long and hopefully for many more years to come.

“I have been laughing for almost 100 years, and I plan to keep laughing,” Vera said.

There’s at least one other couple we know of that achieved the same longevity in both life and in their relationship. Last year we wrote about Lisette and Walter Kimmel , a Maryland couple who celebrated not only their platinum wedding anniversary, but their milestone 100th birthdays. 

Here’s wishing them all many anniversaries and birthdays to come.