Children of couple celebrating 60 years married say they ‘love each other dearly’ and make a ‘great team’

Linda and David Benfield, aged 81 and 83, will celebrate their diamond wedding anniversary on Thursday (March 6).

The pair met through family in July 1964 and got married less than a year later in March 1965.

They share three children, Mark, Helen and Paul – as well as grandchildren Matthew, Emma, Martyn and Laura, and great grandchildren Rose, Logan and Freya.

Linda and David have lived in the town their entire lives and daughter Helen says they are “very excited and proud” to celebrate this milestone.

Their family organised a surprise party last Sunday (March 2) to bring their loved ones together to mark the occasion.

When asked to describe her parents, Helen said: “They laugh together a lot and love each other very dearly. They are kind and caring people who share a sense of humour, a love of family and commitment to one another.”

It is the fact they make a “great team in facing life’s challenges, raising their children and now enjoying their retirement” which their children believe has made their marriage successful over the past six decades.

“Having their children, grandchildren and great grandchildren brings them so much joy,” Helen continued. “They are always at their happiest when we are all together.”

As not many couples reach their 60th wedding anniversary, Mark, Helen and Paul want to make it “as special as possible” as their parents “mean the world” to the entire family.

Helen said: “Nothing is too much trouble for them. They always want to help out and have been there for us all when we have needed their help and support.

“This is our way of showing how much they mean to us and how special they are to a lot of people. We take great inspiration from them – they give so much to their loved ones but still manage to enjoy life as a couple.”

Linda and David enjoy coach holidays and have been on many cruises with family members over the years, including recent trips to the Caribbean and Norway.

The couple’s three children look back fondly on special holidays in Lowestoft when they were children, as well as Burnham-on-Sea when their own children were little.

Other special family memories include Christmas parties, crazy golf and board games, Linda’s wonderful baking, family walks to Kingsthorpe Mill and Harlestone Firs, and visits to East Haddon and Weston Favell to visit grandparents in earlier years.