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High school chums honor their anniversaries together

 
Published July 26, 1996|Updated Sept. 16, 2005

Three couples, including an Oldsmar man and his two high school friends, celebrated their wedding anniversaries together last month. The couples, whose years of marriage total 156, celebrated with a dinner at Jesse's Seafood House in Dunedin.

The men went to Lawrence High School in Long Island, N.Y., and fought in World War II.

All three couples lived on Long Island, went to Woodmere Methodist Church and spent several family vacations together at a lake in Maine.

The reunion celebration was planned by Herbert "Herb" and Gloria St. Martin of Oldsmar.

"Because we don't have much family, we didn't have big party (for our 50th)," Mrs. St. Martin said. "I decided to invite the two couples so we could all celebrate our 50ths at dinner."

The St. Martins went to the same high school but did not meet until after she moved and went to a neighboring high school. They met when they started "going with the same crowd," a group of 30 to 40 kids who met every day at the boardwalk on Far Rockaway Beach.

She knew one of the other men before she met her husband. John Marosy came to America from Transylvania and sat behind her in sixth grade.

"He couldn't speak a word of English, so I helped him with his homework," Mrs. St. Martin said. "He went back to Transylvania for a few years and came back and became friends with my husband."

Marosy married Helen "Buster" Meade while he was at Buffalo State University. After he served with the Navy Seabees during World War II, he taught English, social studies, mechanical drawing and driver's education and coached soccer at Lawrence High School in Lawrence, N.Y.

The Marosys, who celebrated their 50th anniversary in January 1994, now live in Hernando Beach.

Lee Miller also went to Lawrence High School and was friends with St. Martin and Marosy. Miller, an Army artillery veteran of World War II, writes to ex-buddies, plans reunions and goes to many conventions, including one in France for the anniversary of the Normandy invasion. He lives in Crystal River with his wife, Dorothy.

The Millers celebrated their 50th anniversary last month.

The St. Martins were married Oct. 18, 1942, in Woodmere, N.Y.

He retired as a manager of Nassau Suburban Furniture Co. and worked many years at Germman Aircraft Engineering Corp. She worked as an executive secretary for the Suffolk County probation department.

He is a member of the Oldsmar code enforcement board. They are past officers of the Gull Aire Village in Oldsmar social club, and he is a past director of its association. They are members of North Bay Community Church in Safety Harbor.

The St. Martins have two daughters and two grandsons.

When asked about the key to a successful marriage, Mrs. St. Martin said, "Communication and compromise. The two big C's, I suppose."

The St. Martins had visited both couples before moving to Oldsmar in 1983 from Bellport Village, N.Y.

"We grew up with a lot of the same friends," Mrs. St. Martin said. "It's old friends."

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