Meet The St Cloud Couple Who Just Celebrated 80 Years Of Marriage

There is a couple here in St. Cloud that have been married for longer than most of us have been alive! Let that sink in for a minute.

The two lovebirds married in 1946; I believe they both must have been around 19 years old. It was during a time when Harry Truman was president and World War II had just ended. Things that we have only seen in school textbooks. Now, eighty years later, that same couple from St. Cloud is still writing their love story.

MEET BETTY & KERMIT EASTMAN

Betty and Kermit, both recently turned 99 years old, celebrated their "oak anniversary" on June 6th! I didn't even know that an OAK anniversary was a thing. Maybe they should celebrate with an 80-year-old bottle of bourbon.

How many couples actually stay married for 80 years?

Experts estimate only one in six million couples worldwide ever make it that far. Do you know anyone who has been married that long?

Think about everything they have witnessed together.

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SWEETHEARTS

They were young sweethearts in Thief River Falls. Kermit remembers walking up and down the sidewalk near Betty's house, hoping to catch her attention.

Betty remembers a hardworking young man who ran his own lawn mowing business long before entrepreneurship became a buzzword. It reminds me of Wynonna's song, "She Is His Only Need." Just two young kids that couldn't stop thinking about each other, trying to make it in a world that gave them no special treatment.

Their love story was interrupted by World War II when Kermit left high school to join the Navy, and it was no joyride.

During the war, the U.S.S. Mullany was struck by a Japanese kamikaze attack, killing members of the crew.

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KNOWING WHAT IS IMPORTANT

Can you imagine what they bost must have felt? Not knowing if they would ever see each other again? I think that kind of trauma really puts things into perspective for people, to never take each other for granted.

Luckily, Kermit survived that attack and returned home to Betty. The couple married and then did something most newlyweds don't have to do. They went back to high school!

They not only went back to school, but Kermit and Betty attended prom as a married couple.

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EDUCATION WAS IMPORTANT TO BETTY AND KERMIT

Education was clearly important to them both, so they went on to college. After college, they made their home in St. Cloud, where they raised two children and built a family that now includes grandchildren, great-grandchildren, and even great-great-grandchildren.

Marriage is not easy. I can't imagine the trials that these two must have gone through. But back then, were things different? No podcasts, no social media opinions.

WHAT IS THEIR SECRET TO A HAPPY MARRIAGE?

Still, time in and of itself can be grueling. What is their secret to remaining a happy couple after being together for 80 years plus?

"Don't keep secrets and be honest," Betty said.

Kermit put it even more directly.

"Tell it like it is. Just live every day. Every day is a gift."

After 80 years together, that's probably wisdom worth listening to.

Congratulations to Betty and Kermit Eastman on an incredible milestone, and here's to many more cherished days for them both.