By Edna and David Donovan
SECOND PLACE
I was from Westphalia and David was from Drexel, Mo.
In August of 1963 David came to visit his aunt and uncle while he was on leave from the military. They owned the local grocery store in Westphalia.
I worked at the little cafe across the street. It was Monday and Mondays were ham and beans day at the cafe.
The cook never showed up, so I was trying to cook and wait tables. Finally I called mom to come and help me with the cooking so I could be the waitress for the 15-20 regular customers. David’s aunt and uncle were regulars, so this Monday they brought David.
That is when our eyes met for the first time. As my mom said, it was love at first sight. His aunt introduced us though didn’t get to talk.
In Westphalia, a small town, everyone knew everyone, but I did not know this guy. He cruised our little town that night by driving by our house a lot.
The next morning, I walked down to get our mail at the post office. Not planning on seeing this handsome guy, I was barefoot and had big curlers in my hair when we came eye to eye as he was arriving with his aunt and uncle at the grocery store.
When I finally got to talk to him, it was only to find out he was headed to Keesler Air Force Base in Biloxi, Mississippi for technical school. We wrote letters for two months. He returned for two weeks before leaving for Germany. We had two dates, one to a movie and one to a basketball game. Then he went to Germany for two years.
We continued writing letters (no computers or cell phones back then) for two years. About 18 months into writing letters he put a P.S. at the bottom of the letter that said “MARRY ME!!” Guess what? I answered back “YES.”
I graduated in May 1965 and went to work in Ottawa.David returned home from Germany on Oct. 10, 1965. We were married on Oct. 21, 1965 in Westphalia at the Methodist Church. No one in this small town knew we were getting married except my parents, his parents, his three brothers, my two brothers and a sister. Everyone said it would not last as all we did was write letters.
After getting married David left for Texas for two months of military training and then off to Pakistan for 18 months without his new bride. Again, we continued to write letters and I continued to work in Ottawa saving our little paychecks from the military and my checks from work. Just before his returning from Pakistan, I ordered our first car, a 1967 Ford Fairlane, for $2,300 with no car payment.
David continued his military service of 20 years in the USAF where I was able to go everywhere with him except Thailand for a year. Still no computers or cell phones, we wrote letters that year (1973-1974) but on occasion David would get to call us through MARS communication. Thanks to Barry Goldwater of Arizona who picked up all the charges for the military personal. David worked at the MARS Station while stationed in Thailand.
We have two children, Brian and Sherry, and this past Oct. 21, 2020 we were married 55 years. Brian was born in Texas and Sherry was born in Germany. They have been to Italy, Greece, Texas, Illinois, and Mississippi before coming to Iola.
