Iowa Women Marry After 72 Years Together

Vivian Boyack, 91, and Alice 'Nonie' Dubes, 90, finally tie the knot
By Shelley Hazen,  Newser Staff
Posted Sep 9, 2014 7:07 AM CDT
Iowa Women Marry After 72 Years Together
In this Sept. 6, 2014, photo, the Rev. Linda Hunsaker presides over the wedding of Vivian Boyack, left, and Alice "Nonie" Dubes, center, in Davenport, Iowa.   (AP Photo/The Quad City Times, Thomas Geyer)

After 72 years together, two Iowa women have finally said "I do." "This is a celebration of something that should have happened a very long time ago," said the reverend officiating the Saturday wedding of Vivian Boyack, 91, and Alice "Nonie" Dubes, 90. They met in Yale, Iowa, where they grew up, and spent the next seven decades together traveling the US, Canada, and England, reports the Quad-City Times. Boyack worked as an elementary teacher and Dubes in payroll at a newspaper, then at a recycling company.

Iowa has allowed gay marriage since 2009, the AP reports, a milestone that has allowed the couple to start a new chapter late in their lives. For friend Jerry Yeast, 73—who has known the women since he was 18—their union among family and close friends was a very special occasion. "I've known these two women all my life, and I can tell you, they are special," he says. Their secret to staying together all these years? A lot of love and hard work. "We've had a good time," Dubes says. (Click for more uplifting stories.)

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