Liberty – For every decade of marriage, a special gift can be given to commemorate the event.
For a 50-year anniversary, also know as the golden wedding anniversary, gold is the traditional gift. The precious metal is a tribute symbolizing optimism, prosperity, strength, wealth and wisdom.
Bobbie and Silas Allen celebrated their golden wedding anniversary at the Bear Paw Resort Pavilion on June 22. The four-hour party was attended by about 85 people, all who wanted to congratulate the Allens while honoring their gift request.
The couple chose to forego any celebratory gifts in lieu of donations to the Valley River Humane Society’s four-legged tenants.
“I am so proud of Bobbie for excepting donations for the Valley River Animal Shelter in Murphy in place of gifts for herself and her husband, Silas,” said Sherry Hall, one of the ladies in her close circle of friends. “They collected $1,515 for the shelter. She is very selfless and always thinks of others.”
Bobbie is a native of Honolulu, Hi., while Silas was born in Rockwood, Tenn. The two met in South Carolina in 1972 at Ling Tempco Vaught, a company that does government contracts.
She worked on the contracts, while he worked on jet engines. The pair would date for two years before marrying in 1974.
The Allens had strong ties to Cherokee County, as Silas’ parents owned a home in Liberty. Bobbie and Silas were drawn back to the North Carolina mountains 40 years ago, where they’ve remained because – as Bobbie put it – “This is God’s country.”
They have always loved animals, even having been foster parents to fur babies. That’s why they chose to have party guests donate to the Valley River Humane Society over bringing gifts.
“The shelter does so much for the community,” Bobbi said, “and they’re very selfless.”
Cathy Griffin and her husband, Dan, did all the cooking for the party, which ended up being much bigger than expected. Cathy wanted to have a party for the Allens because of their close friendship.
She thought the church would be a good venue until the guest list blew up. They needed a larger space to accommodate all the attendees. With pulled pork, smoked chicken, several Crock Pots of food and mac and cheese, the party was a time-consuming act of love.
Bobbie’s eyes lit up as she said, “The party was wonderful.”
Some people who were unable to attend the event still chose to send checks to the animal shelter.
“After 50 years of marriage we don’t need another toaster,” Silas said. His hope is others will also pick a good cause to help in the future.
There are many factors that go into the success of a marriage that has lasted five decades. The secret, however, was said by Bobbie with a laugh: “Keep your mouth shut.”