Scarborough couple celebrates 65th wedding anniversary.
Eva and Len Peters will celebrate their 65th wedding anniversary with a family event this weekend. The Scarborough couple were married in England on Sept. 15, 1945.
Staff photo/ERIC HEINO
Every morning for the last 65 years, Len and Eva Peters wake up in love with each other.
The couple was married on Sept. 15, 1945 and will be celebrating their 65th anniversary with the family and close friends in their Scarborough home on Saturday, Sept. 11.
The big band music of Glenn Miller was pumping through the log cabin dance hall in North Battleford, Saskatchewan, when Len and Eva first met in 1941. Len was working as an aircraft mechanic for the Royal Air Force; a strapping young man who could have his pick of dance partners.
Even though Eva had arrived with another date, he was immediately drawn to her.
"Well, I did end up getting to have my pick," said Len. "She just looked so beautiful."
For the remaining eight months before Len was transferred to India, he and Eva took every opportunity to meet and go dancing. They fell in love with each other, but Len's time in Canada quickly came to and end.
The two sent love letters back and forth for the next several years until 1945, when Len's duty was finally finished. He returned to England where Eva came to marry him on Sept. 15, 1945.
After the war rations were scarce but Len proved himself to be a provider, even during such difficult times.
"After the war, you couldn't even find a bottle of wine for a wedding," said Len. "I had to run all around town just to find a bottle for a wedding toast."
From then on, the two were inseparable. They lived in England for seven years and had two sons before moving to Toronto in 1952, where they had another son.
The young family lived with friends in a house near Gerrard Street for two years before buying their own place in Scarborough. They moved to a home near Birchmount Road and Lawrence Avenue in 1952, when Lawrence was still a dirt road, mainly surrounded by farmland.
Eva stayed home with the children and Len found a job working as a mechanic, eventually buying his own business. The Peters family grew along with the neighbourhood and by 1980 Len was able to retire at age 60.
"In the mean time, the boys had got married and we decided it was time to take off," said Eva.
Never shy to take on an adventure together, Len and Eva bought a camper van and hit the road. They would spend the next 23 years criss-crossing North America.
Even living in such close quarters for more than two decades, they claim they never fought with one another. They both agreed that spending so much time together was the key to their longevity. They don't keep any secrets, they don't hold grudges and they always keep busy.
They are happy together, but doesn't mean it was always easy.
"Marriage is something you really have to work at," said Eva.
With Len at 90 years old and Eva 87 years old, they have put their camper van days behind them and spend most of their time at home. Recent health problems have led them to rely on each other even more than ever these days. "It's been a good life, we have been so lucky," said Eva.
Len and Eva's now have three children, six grand children and four great grand children, many of whom will be celebrating at an anniversary party on Saturday, Sept. 11.