He was 11, she was 7, and it was hardly love at first sight when
Ed Valdez watched as his future bride moved in next door in Tres
Pinos. He was more interested in her brothers, who were closer to
his age.
He was 11, she was 7, and it was hardly love at first sight when Ed Valdez watched as his future bride moved in next door in Tres Pinos. He was more interested in her brothers, who were closer to his age.
Now, almost 70 years later, their love is hard to hide.
Today, Ed and Leona Valdez are celebrating 58 years since their engagement on Valentine’s Day in 1949. Residents of San Benito County their entire married life, the couple raised a family together and learned together what it takes to make a successful marriage.
When they talk about the life they’ve had together, tears well up in both their eyes. They tease and bat at each other affectionately when sharing old stories.
Margie Barrios and her husband, Ed, have lived next-door to the Valdezes since 1989. Barrios said she tries to model her own marriage after the Valdezes’.
“We are still learning from them,” said Barrios, who has been married more than 30 years. “I hope some day to be like them. They are so considerate – I think that has been the most instrumental thing in their success as a couple.”
Both Leona and Ed seem to appreciate how considerate the other is. Leona said that from the beginning, Ed showed both her and her family respect.
“He never stopped at the end of the day until I did. When I cooked, he was there beside me. I always thought that could make a marriage, if everybody worked together as we did.”
They worked side-by-side to raise two children and are now the proud grandparents of six grandchildren and one great-grandchild.
Their relationship started when Ed – or “Baldy” as he was called back then – returned to San Benito County after World War II. They had been neighbors since Leona had moved to Tres Pinos as a child, but they didn’t know each other well because he was so much older. Now she was 18 and he was 22, and the two were at a holiday season dance in San Juan Bautista. Dressed in a new red suit she’d received for Christmas, Leona turned to Ed’s mother and said she hoped “Baldy” would ask her to dance.
“She was a cupid,” Leona said. “She got us together.”
After a few dates to the movies, the couple was engaged – barely two months after their first dance. But despite the ease of their courtship, the Valdezes said married life has not always been easy.
“None of us know how to do it right from the beginning,” Leona said.
Both Ed and Leona had to work hard at learning what it takes to make a successful marriage.
Leona said one of the most important things she has learned is when to keep her mouth shut and when to speak her mind. Both are quick to point out that they argue, and always have.
“Fighting is important. You gotta clear the air, but then you gotta let go,” Ed said.
Their secret to not letting the fights get out of hand? Not “never going to bed mad,” like some couples say, just never going to bed separately.
Ed said you have to continue to work at marriage. It doesn’t become easy after the 25th anniversary, or even the 50th.
They said each year brings new challenges, but they try to face these problems together. Now, with some health problems cropping up, the Valdezes are learning how important it is to ask for help.
Leona has had increasing back problems, and now needs to rely on Ed more.
“We’ve always been so doggone independent, sometimes it’s hard to ask someone for help,” Leona said, “but we’ve always been able to depend on one another.”
But even as the Valdezes age and meet new challenges, they said their love continues to grow.
“They’re like newlyweds,” Barrios said. “You can just tell that they hold each other so dear to their hearts.”
Alice Joy covers education for the Free Lance. You can reach her at 831-637-5566 ext. 336 or at
aj**@fr***********.com
.
