FEW couples celebrate 71 years of marriage.
Tea Gardens couple Rex and Dawn Dale recently celebrated their 71st wedding anniversary over lunch at Mumms Restaurant with their eldest daughter, Deb.
Married at Maroubra Junction in 1955, the pair lived at Maroubra for the first few years of married life before raising five children.
They now boast nine grandchildren and eight great-grandchildren, and at family get-togethers – not frequent events these days – they welcome 32 members of their extended family.
After a caravan trip of more than 35,000km around Australia with the two youngest family members, Rory and Yasmin, in 1985, Rex and Dawn decided to leave the city and move to Hawks Nest.
They built a new house and bought a small business – an ice works situated in the Tea Gardens industrial area.
Every day for 15 years, especially during school holidays, Rex packed his old Bedford truck with bags of party ice and block ice, plus bread and milk, to sell to the thousands of campers at Mungo Brush National Park.
While Rex was a volunteer at the Tea Gardens Information Centre, Dawn cooked for many years for Meals on Wheels.
Both were foundation members of the Hawks Nest Bridge Club, founded in 1994. Rex served as club president, and Dawn still enjoys at least two bridge sessions each week.
The pair have enjoyed many overseas trips over the years, as well as plenty of caravanning around Australia.
Each winter they would escape to Queensland. After chasing the sun for a few months, they were always glad to return to their home of 40 years in beautiful Tea Gardens.
Their many friends will congratulate them on their latest marriage milestone.
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