Nick and Joanie Gomes gripped each other’s hands and grinned.
“I still choose you. I still love you. And by God’s grace I’m in it with you.” they told each other, repeating after Pastor Andrew Hill. “For better or worse, for fun and fair food, forever.”
Veterans of a 56-year marriage, the Gomeses were one of a dozen couples who refreshed their vows during the Ventura County Fair’s annual Blessing of the Marriages ceremony on Aug. 5.
Together the couples tallied centuries of marriage. Ventura couple Anita and Gary Hensley led the way at 57 years and plan to celebrate their anniversary Aug. 10. Al Perez, president of event host MarriageWell, said the Ventura nonprofit took over the event from fair organizers in about 2017.
“We really try to honor these couples that have been married a long time,” Perez said.
The Gomeses, who hail from Simi Valley, were among a handful of couples who join the ceremony every year. Joanie Gomes said they’ve been coming as long as they’ve known the event to exist.
“We do anything that will encourage our marriage,” she said. “Things get difficult. Life goes through ups and downs. It always goes up again. I do whatever I can to keep going.”
Couples shared advice from their collective decades of experience: Don’t go to bed angry. Swallow your pride. Don’t sweat the small stuff.
For Pat and Richard Glander, of Ventura, the ceremony was a way to celebrate their 47th anniversary, which happened to fall on the same day. The couple lives within walking distance of the fairgrounds and bought the daily pass, popping down to the Seabreeze Stage after spotting the ceremony on the calendar.
A long marriage, they said, takes work.
“It’s not easy. You just work at it,” said Pat.
“We’ve had some hills to go over,” Richard said. “We just lean on each other.”
Hill, a pastor at the Ventura Church of Christ, led couples through vows and celebratory smooches, then prayed a short blessing.
“Renew what’s grown weary, deepen what’s already strong,” he prayed. “Sprinkle in a little more patience, a little more playfulness, a little more grace each day.”
After the ceremony, Nick and Joanie Gomes soaked noonday sun and forked heavy bites of cake from paper plates.
“The cake is nice,” said Joanie. Nick glanced at her, a smile on his face. “Not as nice as you are.”
Isaiah Murtaugh covers Oxnard, Port Hueneme and Camarillo for the Ventura County Star. Reach him at isaiah.murtaugh@vcstar.com or on Signal at 951-966-0914.
This article originally appeared on Ventura County Star: Couples celebrate centuries of marriage at Ventura County Fair
Reporting by Isaiah Murtaugh, Ventura County Star / Ventura County Star
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
