On June 23rd, Fred and Jean celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary with an open house party at the Grupe Center at Central Washington University in Ellensburg.

About one hundred well-wishers arrived near 2 p.m. to offer congratulations and best wishes to Jean and Fred and to enjoy coffee, tea, or lemonade with a piece of any or all of the three delicious cakes baked locally by Vinman’s. All varieties were popular, with the carrot cake edging out the chocolate and the Italian white cake for most repeat customers.

Chris’s family and Kim’s family arrived early to brew coffee, cut up the cakes, and arrange the chairs, and Ben set up the sound system and prepared the slide show.

[1] [2] [3]

Jean and Fred’s good friend Laurae and her trio performed harp, cello, and flute chamber music for about 45 minutes. At one point, they took a brief break so that I could show the the 12-minute video slide show I’d created for Jean and Fred. The slides included two snaps when they were young children, and then courtship photos, shots from their wedding album, the flat tire on their honeymoon, their first house, raising a family, picnics and outings, graduation photos, pictures of both of them in their many volunteer activities over the years, travels to Europe and elsewhere, and finally a number of contemporary photos up through last spring when the entire clan gathered for a photo shoot.

[4] [5] [6] [7]
[8] [9] [10] [11] [12]

About midway through the party, the informal program was kicked off by friends and family listening to a couple of songs recorded by Phil. Chris and Kim stepped up to the microphone to banter a bit and say a few thoughts about the day. Spouses Susan and then Ben followed with their sentiments, and then a procession of grandkids stepped up to the mic to say their bit. Wes revealed great comedic sense while contrasting routine life at home versus stayovers with Grams and Grandpa.

Dean Webb says a few words

A few dear friends stepped up and made a few comments and told a story or two, and finally Jean and then Fred had their turn to tell a few tales. And finally, to bring things full circle, they cut an anniversary cake crowned with their original wedding cake’s top piece. And with that, they encouraged everyone to enjoy seconds and thirds of any of the excellent cakes.

[13] [14]

Flashback to Fifty Years Ago: