David and Wilma Clark celebrated their 60th wedding anniversary on Tuesday. 57599 Picture: Kim Cartmell.
By Lia Bichel
DAVID Clark was on top of the world, literally, when his wife agreed to marry him.
In a storybook romance, a young David proposed to his girlfriend Wilma at the top of a ferris wheel at a Clifton Hill fair.
“She couldn’t get out unless she said yes,” he joked.
Sixty years later, the couple said they couldn’t be happier.
“People never thought we would last because we were so young, but we proved them wrong,” Mr Clark said.
The lovebirds, now aged 81 and 78, met when a young Mrs Clark accompanied her mother to visit a sick colleague, who happened to be Mr Clark’s mother.
When he heard a 17-year-old girl was stopping by the house, David ditched his plans and stayed home to meet his future wife.
“When I first saw her, I thought she was alright,” he laughed.
A week later the two went on their first date to the movies, a year later they were married.
The two lived in Springvale before moving to Narre Warren in 1994. Mr Clark was a fitter and turner by trade and retired 15 years ago, while Mrs Clark was a stay-at-home mum who looked after their three children, Ken, Grant and Wade.
They said the secret to a successful marriage was spending a lot of time together but staying busy.
“We never go out without each other,” Mrs Clark said.
“But we do go out a lot.”
The two are members of the Hallam and Narre Warren Senior Citizen Club where they taught line-dancing regularly, they are members of the Dandenong Works Club, and until recently, Mr Clark sat on more than 50 committees.
They enjoy spending time with their three children, five grandchildren and three great grand children.
When they do have time alone, they enjoy watching television and taking part in a little-friendly competition.
“We do crosswords and play cards,” Mrs Clark said.
“And we have a competition with each other every time we go to the doctors about who has the lower blood pressure!”
They celebrated their 60th wedding anniversary with friends and family at the Dandenong Workers Club on Saturday, and spent the day together on their actual anniversary on Tuesday. They said they have learnt a lot from each other and look forward to continuing to be by each other’s side in the future. “I look forward to at least another 10 years together,” Mr Clark said.
