Love and Salms filled a beautiful old barn yesterday afternoon in Freedom as our friends Bob and Gail celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary. The whole event felt like a giant family hug.
“How’d a guy like you ever land a cute bride like that?” my husband Vince joked.
“I drove a cool car,” Bob answered.
Maybe he did, but he had a lot more than that to offer and, even at 14-years old, Gail knew it.
“I stalked him,” she said. “I was just a freshman in high school and, at first, I didn’t even know his name, but I knew I liked him.”
The two dated all through high school and married when Bob was 20 and Gail just 19.
Together, they raised seven children while working the family farm, an experience that allowed both to demonstrate an admirable combination of strong work ethic and sense of fun.
They generously passed those traits on to at least the next two generations and probably a bunch more. Today, the Salm Family dynasty includes teachers, coaches, electricians, ophthalmologists, commercial real estate agents, physical therapists, singers and many others.
Two sons, Rob and Curt, teach and coach football at Appleton North High school and, in two years, Bob and Gail will have 12 grandchildren enrolled in the school at the same time.
That lucky, lucky school.
Happy 50th to two people we feel so fortunate to call friends.
We can’t wait to see what the next 50 years bring!
Great tribute to a golden wedding anniversary.
Thank you Laura, so glad you were there to celebrate with us!!
I wish we could have stayed longer. You guys know how to throw a party!!
Reading & looking at your post of the Salm anniversary…..and there is Marge Higgins!! Was this at the former Hooyman farm/barn. Heard they had transformed it into a wedding venue.
It’s the Country Barn on E in Freedom. It was really cool inside