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Michele Bock - MelanieMichele®
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Normal, IL--(MelanieMichele)--Feb 18, 2008-- Melanie and Michele’s Great Uncle and Great Aunt Celebrate their 83rd Wedding Anniversary!!!!

Our warmest congratulations to our Great Uncle Clarence and Mayme Vail who celebrated 83 years of marriage. They are going into the “Guinness Book of World Records” for being married longer than any other living couple on earth. Our mother attended their anniversary party and she said it was a joy to see them and the family. Her Uncle Clarence is always very cordial and his wife, Mayme, is lovely and kind.

At 101 and 99 years of age, what is the Vails' secret to success? Clarence says "Avoid debt, strive for simple, clean living, no public arguments, feed your faith, and accept your spouse as is." Then Clarence went on to say, "Pick a good woman and let her lead the way." That is good advice from a humble Minnesotan. ( http://www.govtrack.us/congress/record.xpd?id=110-h20070725-27 )

Mayme said patience is the key to a long marriage. "You've got to admit you're wrong now and then," said Mayme. "I've had to do it." Clarence summarized 83 years of married life in his simple way. "Kind of lucky," he said. ( http://wcco.com/local/oldest.couple.83rd.2.656050.html )

Mayme and Clarence Vail — the longest-married couple in the country — had a lovely Valentine's Day at their place in the Comforts of Home assisted living center in White Bear Lake. " Mayme's the outspoken one, always has been." The secret of a long marriage, she once told me, is: "You have to endure sarcasm now and then. And when you have a disagreement, one of you has to keep quiet." Do they take turns getting one's way and being the one who keeps quiet? "Well, my husband doesn't speak too much," she said. "He's the strong silent type."
( http://www.minnpost.com/joekimball/2008/02/14/897/valentines_day_is_special_for_longest-married_couple_in_the_country )

"Married in 1925, they almost didn't make it to their 25th anniversary. When Clarence became critically ill with tuberculosis in 1948, Mayme made a promise to God that if her husband survived, she would attend mass every day -- a promise she kept until last year when health issues forced them to move into an assisted-living center." "She's got good genes; she used to walk to mass every day," said her daughter, Arlene Leyden of St. Paul, who filled out the 17 pages of paperwork required by the Guinness record-keepers. ( http://www.startribune.com/local/east/15724647.html )

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