LAS CRUCES, NM (AP) – A chance meeting on July 18, 1946 and three weeks together – that marked the beginning of Thomas and Dee House’s 75-year marriage.
“This is supposed to be the marriage that wouldn’t last,” said Thomas.
But two daughters, seven grandchildren and seven great-grandchildren later and they’re still best friends.
Dee, 91, was born in Empire, Ohio and Thomas, 97, was born in Charles Town, West Virginia. They grew up during the Great Depression and watched the country slowly approach war.
In 1941, before the US joined World War II, Thomas joined the US Navy. He was then 17 years old so his mother had to sign for him, but he was determined to go out on the open water.
“I love the Navy, I love the water,” said Thomas. “I had this poster they had during WWII that said ‘Uncle Sam needs you’. So I looked at it and said, ‘You know, I think I need Uncle Sam too.’ “
The war ended in September 1945 and Thomas returned home. About 10 months later, he got off a cart outside a coffee shop in Norfolk, Virginia. Dee worked inside and immediately noticed Thomas. He saw her too. Nobody could take their eyes off the other.
“I just thought it was the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen,” Dee said with a laugh.
Thomas and Dee talked into the night on his porch swing, and Dee remembers saying, “If I feel about you the way I do now … I’ll ask you to marry me.” Three weeks later, he did. Dee said she replied “yes” asap.
On August 9, 1946, the couple married in Indian Head, Maryland, at the home of a Baptist minister who tried to talk them out of it. It was only after they tied the knot that Dee, then 16, told her parents about the union.
“My people were just horrified. They were just so mad, ”Dee said. “I was visiting my cousin and shouldn’t be with myself – especially with sailors.”
Soon they were taken to Thomas’ nearest duty station – Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. Their eldest daughter Cheryl Samuels was born there in 1947. They have a second daughter, Suzanne Williford.
Tom’s Navy job moved her around the world – Washington DC for his work at the Pentagon; Japan; San Diego; and Fort Campbell, Kentucky. He even spent time on the aircraft carrier USS Midway. The months Tom was stationed on a ship at sea were the toughest for her family.
“It was so tough on me and the girls,” said Dee. “They thought he left us.”
Tom was a Chief Warrant Officer W-3 with a top secret clearance when he retired from the Navy at Clarksville Base, Tennessee.
The couple moved to near Kerrville, Texas and built a house for themselves. In 1990 they lived in Moriarty, New Mexico. But the cold winters were getting too much, so they moved to Las Cruces in 1994.
Cheryl died in 2006 of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, commonly known as ALS or Lou Gehrig’s disease. Suzanne and her husband retired to Las Cruces to be closer to the houses.
Houses have faced obstacles all of their lives, but nothing has hindered their devotion for one another. Tom said when they first met he was obsessed with the idea of being with Dee. And Dee didn’t want Tom to leave her.
“When we got married, we knew we would be best friends forever. And we knew we would have a hand to hold on to. And we never let go, ”said Tom.
Comments are closed.