Willetts look back on over 50 years of marriage

• Willetts

Betty and Ron Willett are in their 56th year of marriage. The couple has resided in the Ellsworth area since the 1970’s. -- Photo by Jason Schulte

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Ron Willett has been a resident of the Ellsworth Care Center for nearly the last three years. During that time, he can always count on getting one visitor every day.

“I stop here every day and visit, sometimes more,” his wife Betty said. “I want to make sure he’s getting the right care.”

Ron was diagnosed with Parkinson’s, a degenerative disorder of the central nervous system which impairs the person’s motor skills, speech and other functions.

It’s just the latest test the couple has faced in their 56 years of marriage.

“When you are younger, one doesn’t think about stuff like Parkinson’s,” Betty said. “(But) I think our relationship got stronger when he was diagnosed.”

She backed up her point by adding they recently renewed their wedding vows, which were “wonderful.”

The pair talked about their marriage last week at the care center, which held a Wedding Memories program in which residents shared pictures, dresses and other favorite memories from their weddings.

The couple met through acquaintances, as Betty was dating one of Ron’s friends. That relationship ended and soon the couple started spending time together, and the rest is history.

The wedding was held in the Twin Cities area, where the couple both resided. What stood out to Betty from the day were two of her cousins stealing her after the ceremony.

“They were quite darling,” Betty said of her cousins.

The couple stayed in the Twin Cities area, but Ron was seeking a change.

“He always wanted to farm and found one near Ellsworth,” Betty said. “He said he would fix it up and he did.”

The couple made the move to Ellsworth in the 1970s and there was a bit of an adjustment, she said.

“It was hard getting used to people coming in and out,” she said.

She got used to the change and soon it became home.

“We love it down here and wouldn’t change a thing,” she said. “The people here are so nice.”

The couple is the parents of four, and has two grandchildren and three great-grandchildren.

Tags: local news, communities, ellsworth