Goodrich- As lovers ask, ‘Will you be mine?? this Valentine’s Day, Corky and Edward Bohlen answered that question more than 70 years ago, vowing to each other, ‘I will,? on July 20, 1944.
The couple kept their wedding day promise, sealing with a kiss a love that has lasted a lifetime.
Asked how they have succeeded in making marriage last where so many others have failed, Edward, 90, said, ‘We work out the problems and keep going. We started in high school and just kept working on it and we are doing fine.?
Edward moved to Goodrich for their senior year of high school in 1942. Corky recalls all the girls liked him. On Tuesday, while sharing their love story at Cranberries Cafe, she shows his senior (high school) picture, likening him to the actor Clark Gable, famed for his portrayal of Rhett Butler in ‘Gone With the Wind.?
After a basketball game in Goodrich one fated night seven decades ago, Corky, Edward and a bunch of their friends went cruising. After that night, despite the fact she was engaged to a man serving in the military, she too was smitten with Edward, and he with her.
‘Maybe he had one too many beers,? she laughs now as she shares their love story at Cranberries Cafe, and then laughing again, ‘Maybe I need a beer.?
Cranberries owner and Corky’s friend and former daughter-in-law, Patty Plant, asks if she would like a glass of wine, to which Corky, 89, readily agrees and continues.
‘We were cruising and he said, ‘You have to kiss me good night,’ and that was it after that. I sent my boyfriend back his ring and a Dear John letter.?
Edward began his courtship of Corky, taking her on dates to the Fox Theater in Detroit, where he was originally from.
‘It was a big deal for a little country girl,? she recalls. ‘We’d go to stage plays and saw Benny Goodman and musicals. He took me out to dinner. He was a big spender, maybe that’s what swept me off my feet.?
She doesn’t recall a formal proposal, saying the couple more or less took it for granted that marriage to each other was their future. On Nov. 10, 1943, Edward gave Corky her ring.
A glance at her hand reveals a bare left ring finger, but a heart that is full. Corky explains she gave her ring to a grandson to give to the woman he loved.
‘He didn’t have a job then and he told me he wanted to give her a ring,? Corky said. ‘I said, ‘Don’t buy one, I’ll give you mine.’ He needed it more than I did. Diamonds aren’t my best friends.?
And while Edward may have been a big spender while they were dating, Corky muses that couples would be better off focusing more on the marriage and less on an expensive wedding. She and Edward spent about $80 on their wedding in the rectory of St. Michael’s Catholic Church in Flint, with just their parents and siblings present. After, they went to her aunt’s house and then honeymooned at a cabin next to Houghton Lake.
It was during the honeymoon that Corky would get her first literal lesson that marriage isn’t all smooth sailing.
‘We went out on a boat and it was windy and the boat was rocking and he said, ‘I forgot to tell ya, I don’t know how to swim,’? she recalls. ‘I made him take me back, I didn’t want my husband to die on our honeymoon!?
She acknowledges that there would be more rough patches, particularly when Edward was laid off from his job for a year as a forklift operator at Buick, but she notes they both came from families where ‘once you were married, you stayed that way.?
She remembers still what her father told her: ‘Whatever you saw in him when you first met and fell in love, it’s still there. Sometimes, it’s harder to find, but you work at it.?
She also tried to follow her mother’s advice to never go to bed mad at each other, although Corky admits she didn’t always succeed. Her own advice is to never be afraid to tell your spouse how you feel, whether they like it or not. She also believes in a kiss goodbye in the morning.
The Bohlens had their first child, a son, Tom, in 1945. Daughter Shawn was born in 1947, followed by sons Tim, 1951, Scott, 1956, Mike, 1958, and daughter Jayme, 1962. They lost two children– a son, Allen, died at 2-days-old in 1960, and a daughter, Darlona, was stillborn in 1963.
After Tim was born, Corky said she went to work at Fisher Body for two years, but realized the more money you make, the more you spend.
The couple lived in Atlas Township with her parents for a few years after they first married, then Edward built them a house on M-15. He worked in the construction business for the majority of their marriage, and six years ago went to work for the Mass Transit Authority in Flint, supervising the building of bus stops. He will retire in October.
Edward and Corky enjoyed bowling, snowmobiling and playing softball together for hobbies. They go to church together and they always shared the same political views, but not the same views on raising children.
‘He went by the book, I went by instinct,? she said.
Corky said she won that battle, and the kids were also her marriage’s greatest reward. Corky and Edward were also rewarded with 19 grandchildren and 20 great-grandchildren. They renewed their vows on their 70th anniversary.
‘I love that he’s kind and understands me,? she said as she finished reflecting on a lifetime with her husband. ‘A 70-year marriage is a roller coaster– you can be up and down, but you hang on for the ride.?