Bob and Daph Dunwoodie dance to “their song“.
For one Esperance couple, last week marked a milestone anniversary that brought their family together.
Bob and Daph Dunwoodie celebrated 65 years of marriage on August 28sharing food, a little dancing and a whole lot of love with their nearest and dearest.
The two had met in Albany when they were just 15 and 16 years old. Daph had been working at the Newsagents the first time she had seen Bob.
“He would come down on his bike with all the newspapers in his basket and I thought ‘oh he’s alright’,” she said.
Bob and Daph were married two years later in 1959 and moved to Esperance together in May of 1965.
“We had such a good relationship and childhood,” Daph said.
“I never thought I would leave Albany.
“I could never leave Esperance now with my mob here.”
Bob and Daph raised a family of three daughters, each of which now have families of their own who gathered to celebrate the very special day. Daph said that along with daughters and son in laws, there were seven of their grandchildren and 12 out of 17 great grandchildren.
The couple’s children surprised them by playing “She was only seventeen” by Marty Robbins, over the venue’s speakers.
“It is our song,” Daph said.
“They played it through the speakers, and we got up and danced to it.
“That was very special.”
In the song, Marty Robbins poses the question, “Are they old enough to know if love will last for a life?”. On the 65th anniversary of their marriage, it seems for Bob and Daph Dunwoodie, they had the answer from the very beginning.
