By CASEY NEILL
PERSISTENCE has paid off in spades for Keysborough man Ray Johnstone.
He and wife Maxine tied the knot on 6 March 50 years ago thanks to his determination.
Ray, 74, and Maxine, 71, met at a dance in Mentone when they were aged 20 and 17.
“In those days you went to dances with your girlfriends and that’s how you met guys,” Maxine said.
“I don’t know what the young ones do now but it seems a lot harder to meet people, I think.”
Ray was captivated with Maxine from the moment he laid eyes on her.
“I went in and saw this chick there and started dancing,” he said.
“I said ‘can I take you home?’ and she said ‘no, my uncle’s coming to pick me up’.”
Undeterred, office worker Ray asked to see the trainee teacher the following day. But Maxine was going to teacher’s college with her mum and little sister.
Ray, who lived in Hampton, offered to drive them.
“I was trying to get rid of him, actually!” Maxine laughed.
Ray said: “I realised that!”.
Maxine lived on an unmade road in Braeside.
“We also didn’t have a phone so if he wanted to get in contact during the week he would drive over,” she said.
Ray was “determined anyway”.
“There was a bit of a worry about getting bogged. The potholes were huge,” he said.
He asked her to a few dances and they’ve been together – and dancing – ever since.
“I was determined. I won,” he laughed.
They married at Christ Church in Acland Street, St Kilda, when they were aged 21 and 24.
They have three children, Andrea, Tracey and Chris, nine grandchildren and one great-grandchild.
The whole family will celebrate their golden anniversary at a party on 22 March.
“We’re very lucky. We do have a very close family,” Maxine said.
The couple has lived in the same Keysborough home for their entire married life.
“When we got engaged, we bought our block of land up here,” Ray said.
“We organised to build the house and then set the wedding date.”
There were only three other houses within sight when they moved in.
“Within the first week, we got woken up about five in the morning, driving cattle past our place up to the market – about 300 head of cattle,” Ray said.
“They were riding around, cracking their whips – just like you see on movies.”
Maxine said having different pastimes had helped to keep their marriage happy.
“We’re not always under each other’s feet,” she said.
“And we get along well. We’re always on the same wavelength.
“It sounds so long ago and it doesn’t feel like that. Time goes so quickly. You think ‘golly, 50 years!’.”
Ray’s secret to a happy marriage was simple.
“We’re best friends. Max is my best friend,” he said.
