Alan and Doris Ford. Photo by Bill Campbell.
Alan and Doris Ford say tolerance and working together
are behind their 60 years of happily married life.
The retired Palmerston dairy farmers recently celebrated
their 60th wedding anniversary with a group dinner at the
Waihemo Lodge.
The couple grew up in Mornington, Dunedin - a friendly
suburb, they recall, where people talked to their neighbours
and travelled to and from work on the Maryhill and Mornington
cable cars.
The couple's social lives revolved around church bible
classes, and badminton and tennis were played on the church
courts.
The couple got married on January 27, 1951 and moved to their
farm. The farm was on town supply.
The milk was collected by the Palmerston milk vendor. Milk
cost threepence a pint then and was sold door to door using a
milk can and a ladle.
Palmerston was similar to Mornington, the couple said. It was
a town where they could do "all their shopping".
Dances and balls, especially the Plunket and golf club balls,
were major social events in the 1950s and 1960s.
Stock and station agents often stayed the night.
The International Harvester reps were popular because they
would bring films and a projector.
The couple raised two sons and a daughter. They now live in
the Palmerston township, while son Iain runs the farm.
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