Names: Dr. Nancy J. Kennedy-Howard and Yvonne D. Kennedy-Howard
Ages: Nancy, 64; Yvonne, 65
Professions: Nancy is a retired federal worker and Yvonne is retired probation and court officer
City, State: Millsboro, DE
Date of Wedding: November 27, 2013
The Big Day: With our two witnesses, we went to the Justice of the Peace in Georgetown, DE
The Firsts:
First meeting: Yvonne’s partner passed in 1990 when she was working in Alameda County, California. After retiring, she went to school in California and received her academic training which led to her becoming a personal chef. For various reasons, she left California and relocated to Lewes, Delaware in 2010.
Nancy and her partner were together for over 28 years when Nancy’s partner had a fatal heart attack in 2012. After almost nine months of grieving, Nancy turned to the web site of “Lesbians over 40,” and Nancy, who had already purchased a retirement home in Delaware, met Yvonne online. Causal writing became daily and they planned to meet in March 2013. Nancy, who was also a caregiver for her elderly mother suffering from Alzheimer’s, would pick up her mom, living in an assisted living facility in Pennsylvania, and bring her on monthly visits to Delaware.
First Date: Although Nancy and Yvonne had corresponded daily for months, the anticipation of meeting in person was quite elevated. Despite a terrible rain storm, Yvonne brought homemade meals for not only Nancy and her mom, but also the two dogs. The dinner was superb and, after seeing that Nancy’s mom went to bed, the two of them talked incessantly for hours. Despite the Alzheimer’s that Nancy’s mom had, she did come into the room and tell Yvonne that it was probably time for her to go home. That evoked a lot of laughter and a week later Nancy returned without her mom, and Yvonne came to dinner, again bringing delicious food, and this time there was no external interruption. Sparks flew and we both knew that this was the person with whom we desired to spend our lives together. There was so much to do but “one day at a time” became our mutual mantra.
First kiss: Filled with the same excitement that had laid dormant for years but signified a partnership that would be forthcoming with anticipation of love and accomplishing the proverbial “bucket list.”
When They Knew: We knew immediately, as did our two keeshonds, BeBe and Bettina. We began to prioritize given the failing health of Nancy’s parents and the desire to combine two households.
The Proposal: Perhaps, the wisdom that comes with age as well as the knowledge of spending your golden years together resulted in our mutual decision to be married as soon as we could possibly do that. Unfortunately, Nancy’s mother, who had been ambulatory, developed other complications due to aging and passed in September. As both of us come from very small families and our friends are dispersed throughtout the country, we identified to two special people as our witnesses when we exchanged our vows and rings at the Justice of the Peace located in Georgetown, DE on November 27, 2013.
The Ring(s): Our plans are to have rings designed that match our tastes. But, for the ceremony, Nancy, an Aries for whom diamonds are her birth stone, wore diamonds that had familial sentiment. Nancy gave Yvonne a ring that symbolized simplicity underscored with love. Of course, designing our own rings and wearing them will be a shared dream come true.
Honeymoon: Our plans are to travel to Nevis, the country of Yvonne’s maternal ancestors and soak in the beauty of the beach where the weather is always 82 degrees.
Looking into the Future: We will continue to live one day at a time accomplishing our bucket list that includes a written documentary of our life experiences during the historical times of the past six decades.
