Jim and Kathleen: our secret to 67 years of marriage

When Kathleen and Jim met at a dance, they could never have imagined that their chance encounter could lead to a happy marriage of 67 years and counting!

The couple, who live at Sanctuary Care’s Regent Residential Care Home in St John’s, Worcester, reminisced about their journey.

Jim said: “It came to The Last Waltz, and I asked her to dance and we’ve been together ever since. I think I fell in love with her that first night.”

The following week, Jim arrived at the same club desperately hoping to see Kathleen, and the rest, as they say is history – just over a year later they were married!

After they married, they had three children followed by four grandchildren and two great grandchildren. 

When asked to pinpoint their secret to a successful marriage Jim said: “It’s love, the important word is love. Our marriage means the world to me.”

And another key ingredient is good communication. “If you have a problem you’ve got to talk about it, don’t do nothing, or it will fester,” he adds. 

Reflecting on their journey, Kathleen said: “I love him very much - and he’s a good man to look at! I think we’ve done very well. As well as dancing, I used to love watching Jim play cricket.”

Jim spent several years as a police officer, while Kathleen was a telephone operator. The couple moved a lot because of Jim’s work and have clocked up an impressive 17 house moves.

They also share a love of football, despite supporting rival teams, Aston Villa for Jim and West Bromwich Albion for Kathleen!  

They moved to Regent to be closer to family, and were delighted when the home manager, Paul Eccles, drove all the way to Torquay to personally collect them because of a transport issues - three weeks later they have settled in beautifully.

“The food is top notch, and the staff are very good,” adds Jim.

For more about life at Regent, or any of Sanctuary Care’s nine homes in Worcestershire, our Enquiry Support Team are here to help on 0800 331 741.