Remaining positive and staying happy with one another is the secret to a long, successful marriage, according to a Tanunda couple who celebrated a marital milestone recently.
Mr and Mrs Anton and Christabelle Unger celebrated their 60th wedding anniversary last Thursday.
The couple got married at Zion Lutheran Church, Angaston, on November 25, 1961, followed by the reception at Angaston SACWA Hall.
“I remember the day being extremely hot, it felt like it was 100 degrees,” Mrs Unger said.
“It was a long day but the both of us were very excited.
“My bridesmaids, Helen Miles and Terral Linke, and Anton’s groomsmen, Laszlo Diczhagi and Darrel Hearnden, were fantastic on the day.
“My mother did all the catering and everything went to plan.
“It was perfect.”
The couple met through work in Angaston at PMG, which, at the time, was a telephone service.
They were together for five years before they got married and over the years lived in Angaston, Loxton, Glenelg, Para Hills and now live in Tanunda.
Together the couple had five children: Mark, Susan, Darren, Annabel and Amanda.
Their eldest, Mark, sadly passed away, but the others blessed Mr and Mrs Unger with six grandchildren: Corey, Nikki, Zakary, Sebastian, Xavier and Riley.
Mr Unger said he and Mrs Unger spent lots of time together over the years doing things they loved.
“We loved to dance, and many years ago there were many dances on in the Barossa,” he said.
“We did rock and roll dancing, ballroom dancing and much more.
“We love football and barrack for the Adelaide Crows.
“We’d go to many AFL games together and cheer them on.
“Gardening is also something we both enjoyed doing, but Christabelle won’t let me out anymore in case I fall down.”
Mrs Unger said she was proud of the life she and Mr Unger created.
“Our family is everything to us,” she said.
“We spent a lot of time with the children when they were growing up.
“Mark had cerebral palsy and was wheelchair dependent so he needed a lot of care.
“The other children were crazy about sport, so we were always taking them out to games.
“Marriage isn’t easy but staying positive and not getting mad at each other has gotten us through.
“Not many people stay married these days and not many people make it to 60 years.
“We are well and truly happy.”