The love that bloomed for a Stonewall couple seven decades ago continues to thrive today as they celebrate their platinum anniversary.
Al and Helen Hickey marked their milestone 70th wedding anniversary on April 3 surrounded by friends and family at a celebration held at Pizza Den.
Now age 94 and nearly 90, the long-time sweethearts remember their early days of fluttering hearts like it was yesterday.
The year was 1944 and Al had heard the buzz that there was a new girl in town, an orphan taken in by his neighbours. He stood at the church gate to watch them pull up in their Model A. The 14-year-old boy was disappointed to see that the girl who got out of the vehicle was much too young for him — four years younger, to be exact.
“That was my introduction to Helen, now my wife who I have been married to for 70 years,” Al said.
His mother learned that Helen could play the piano but only when guests were visiting the neighbours’ home. His mom made it a habit to visit often so Helen would have a chance to play, and she’d bring Al along.
“I liked to sing, so I began to forget about her age,” Al said. “It was about another eight years before we ever really dated.”
After a while, Al left to study in the United States for two years. When he returned, he was cast in a three-act comedy called Good Gracious Grandma, a love story with four leads.
In the final scene, Al’s character was scripted to kiss a woman behind a newspaper — but when the actress’s husband found out, he forced her out of the play. Someone suggested Helen as a replacement, and Al was tasked with finding her. He started his search by visiting the neighbours she used to live with. They invited him in and he couldn’t believe his eyes when he saw a photo of the beautiful teenage girl.
“My heart stopped and I knew I would find her one way or another,” he said.
He found out she now lived in the city and she agreed to take the bus to Stonewall for rehearsals if Al would drive her home.
“It was six months of very hard work, and just before we put on the play for the second time in the Parochial Hall in Stonewall, Helen and I were engaged to be married. No one knew at that time and we decided to have some fun,” Al recalled.
“I had a talk with the stage hands, and when we got to the end of the last scene, we were behind the newspaper as we were supposed to be. The curtain came down with a round of applause. Then, slowly, the curtain began to go up. Helen and I were kissing passionately, without the newspaper. The crowd went wild! We had had our fun — in more than one way.”
The couple had also been attending a youth group together, and they announced their plans to marry the following spring. The group presented the sweethearts with a plaque displaying the message of Proverbs 3: 5-7: “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him and He shall direct your paths.”
“These verses have meant a great deal to us over the years,” Helen said. “The plaque still hangs in our home and we have attempted to make these verses the guide for our lives.”
Al and Helen were married on April 3, 1954. They enjoyed a month-long honeymoon with visits to Al’s aunt in Iowa and sister in Illinois.
“We will never forget driving along Lake Shore Drive in Chicago in our little Ford Prefect that would not keep up with the rest of the traffic,” Helen recalled.
At the time, Al worked as a crane operator for Manitoba Hydro. The night they were returning home to Winnipeg from their honeymoon, they got caught in a spring snowstorm in Fargo. They arrived safely home at 10 p.m., but at 3 a.m., the alarm went off.
“Hydro lines were coming down and I was to be at work immediately,” Al said. “I never got home for three weeks — not a good way to begin a marriage.”
Although Al didn’t initially want Helen to work outside the home, she had a different plan. She got a piecework job at a clothing factory and earned nearly as much as Al, so the newlyweds began to save for a home.
The following year, Al decided to stop working for Hydro, even though he enjoyed the work, so he could spend more time with Helen. When the streetcars were taken off the road in Winnipeg, he became a city bus driver for a short time. After that, friends convinced him to apply for a job at the penitentiary in Stony Mountain. He got the job and began to take every course possible to further his career. He soon received the first of many promotions.
In 1958, their baby girl Linda was born. Al described Helen as an attentive mother who loved their daughter with a passion.
Two years later, the young family had saved enough money to buy three acres of land near Stonewall, which they cleared themselves with the help of family and friends. They began to build the only home they ever owned.
“It took a long time to finish our home, but when it was done, it was 72 feet in length, two baths, a double garage, a beautifully finished basement and a gorgeous landscaped lawn,” Al said. “The lawn was Helen’s pride and joy. I cut the lawn and she looked after the flowers.”
All the while, Al’s mother took care of wee Linda so Helen could continue to work. They were able to pay off their home in 10 years, thanks to their dual income.
“With our work, my studies and the building of our house, we had a lot of work ahead of us — and some stress,” Al said.
Throughout her life, Helen continued to wonder about her birth parents, and around 1963, she learned that she had a sister. Al somehow got the idea that Helen might also have family around Riverton, so they took a Sunday drive to the community. At a gas station, they asked an attendant who they should talk to for information about someone who used to live in the area. They were told to ask a person who was picking rocks in a field straight ahead of them.
“That person turned out to be someone who had babysat Helen when she was a baby. This, in turn, led to finding the Holyk and Petrachek families — Helen’s uncles and aunts and their families on both sides,” Al said.
“Helen and I have always believed in prayer. Was it possible that God was answering our prayers?”
Over the next few years, Helen, Al and Linda travelled to parts of the United States and Canada to meet more family members. They organized a weeklong family reunion and discovered that some relatives had been out of touch for 40 years.
They also learned that Helen had another sister who had been adopted, but they had no information about where she might be.
“We never gave up, and again after much prayer for the next 38 years, we found Helen’s sister,” Al said. “Unlike many such reunions, they have been close ever since. Helen will be 90 in October of this year and her sister is now 93.”
For many years, Helen continued working at the clothing factory and later worked at a jewelry store until she was 80.
Meanwhile, Al continued with his studies and eventually received a certificate from McMaster University. He served as a department supervisor and co-ordinator of more than 200 volunteers. He later became acting head of social development at the penitentiary and conducted seminars across Canada.
“I loved my work. Looking back, I now realize, however, I could have spent more time with my wife. I was always too busy,” he said.
“Helen did travel with me at times and actually took some of the training that I took to be able to hold down the job I now held. In many ways we were much alike — go, go, go.”
In 1991, Al retired from Correctional Service Canada with 40 years of service. After that, he did some contract work in parole service for the next four years.
“Helen then sang me the song “Enjoy Yourself, It’s Later Than You Think,’” Al recalled. “I agreed, even though Helen still continued to work part-time till years later.”
After Al officially retired, the couple travelled with their motorhome for most of the next four years. They enjoyed their adventures but eventually started to feel that they wanted to do something of value.
They visited a Spanish-speaking college called Rio Grande Bible Ministries in Texas and ended up working as volunteers during the winter months. For the next 18 years, Al worked at Rio Grande in construction while Helen worked in the daycare, quilting department and looked after the food pantry.
Linda grew up and became a commercial and landscape artist. She married and had a daughter named Andrea. She also spent several years with a mission in Ireland.
Unfortunately, Linda passed away in 2010 at the age of 52.
“This was the low spot in our 70 years of marriage — a very difficult time for Helen,” Al said. “As Bible-believing Christians, faith is what sees you through these valleys in life.”
Now their granddaughter Andrea is married with two daughters, Georgina and Harriet. She lives in London, England, and works in financial law while her husband Ross undertakes research at a university.
“They are our pride and joy,” Helen said. “We are also pleased to see them involved in a church and setting a good example for their children by the way they live their lives.”
Al continued to serve as a member of the Canadian board of Rio Grande Bible Ministries Canada for 22 years in all.
“I resigned that at the request of our granddaughter Andrea and her husband Ross less than two yeas ago,” he said. “They suggested that Grandma Helen wanted more of my time. I took their advice.”
When they look back at their 70 years together, they recall several decisions they made while they were engaged after receiving the plaque with Proverbs verses. They decided to attend church on Sundays whenever possible, to give at least a tenth of their income for a tithe, to study the Bible throughout their lives and to make their marriage a lifetime commitment.
“Have we succeeded? We would be dishonest if we simply told you we had. The Bible tells us in Ephesians 2:8-9 that it is by grace you have been saved — are able to look forward to eternity through faith and this is not from yourselves. It is the gift of God, not of works, so that no one can boast. The key, as Helen and I see it, is the word ‘faith,’” Al said.
“The works we do, like helping others in various ways, should follow if we are sincere. No one in this life is perfect. The Christian life is a process, and all we can say is that we have tried. We have had our valleys and, looking back, there are regrets and things that we have learned that hopefully we have passed on to others.”
About 10 years ago, the couple made the difficult choice to sell their home and move to the Lions Manor, where they remain today.
When they think about what’s kept them together all these years, a few things come to mind.
“Helen and I were fortunate to enjoy many of the same things — gardening, fishing, downhill skiing, travelling throughout the U. S. and Canada, Mexico where we helped build a church, Hawaii, the Holy Land, Egypt, climbing the Great Pyramid, England, Ireland and Wales — even playing dominoes and Skip-Bo in the evenings,” Al said.
“Helen taught Sunday School for 20 years in one of the churches we attended, I assisted her in that at times. I was a Cub Scout leader for something like 14 or 15 years. Helen assisted me with that.”
In addition, Helen still enjoys playing the piano while Al sings along.
“We still enjoy playing and singing together,” Al said. “At our anniversary dinner on April 3, I sang her the song ‘I Love You Because.’”
Of course, they’ve had their disagreements, like most couples do, but they were always quick to forgive and forget.
“Helen and I have our differences; however, much of the way we think and most of the things we enjoy bring us together and make us a team. When the chips are down, we always support one another,” Al said.
“We truly care for each other. And our faith and commitment that our marriage was for a lifetime has made our 70 years possible.”
