Mom and Dad - 2/27/60 |
The couple had met on a blind date 2 years earlier. Malcolm, originally from Alabama, was in the military stationed at Eglin Air Force Base in Florida and he happened to go home with a buddy on leave to Memphis. They needed another girl for a double date, so the buddy asked his next - door neighbor, Shirley, to join them.
Love Letters Dad sent Mom - 1959-60 |
Many letters and a few hitchhiking trips to Memphis later, the two were married and began their life together in Florida. Then on to Alaska when the air force sent them there. After several years of service, Malcolm was discharged and they settled in his hometown of Altoona, Alabama. Fast forward to 1981 and their only child, a daughter, was born. They named her Debra. :)
After living a simple, unsophisticated life together, full of hard work and their share of hardships, Malcolm and Shirley both passed away in 2011 after 50 years of marriage.
The ending to their story may not have always been "happily ever after", but Malcolm and Shirley left a beautiful legacy.... One of faith in God, devotion to their family and friends, and the kind of love and dedication to each other that means more to me than any fairy tale ever could.
Mom and Dad - Jan 2008 |
Happy Anniversary in Heaven, Daddy and Momma.
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