A couple who are celebrating their diamond wedding anniversary say the secret to a long marriage is a sense of humour and wine.
Sybil and George Noicely, who are both 83-years-old, got married 60 years ago today (Thursday).
When asked what the secret to such a long marriage was, they said: “A sense of humour, understanding each other and a glass of white wine!”
“Having the children and grandchildren around makes the marriage even happier,” Sybil, a retired care worker, added.
The Jamaican couple met in Savanna-la-Mar in Westmoreland Parish in 1955 when George was working as a police officer.
Sybil, who was working as a seamstress at the time, said: “I was riding my cycle one evening without the lights on. George stopped me because I didn’t have my lights on.
“He gave me a warning, but he was friendly.
“Then the next time he was going to deliver a summons to somebody, he drove past my house and I was sitting sewing in the window. He came over because he remembered me.
“Then we kept in touch and became friends.”
Two years later, they got married and two years after that, they moved to Dalton in Huddersfield, where Sybil’s sister Myrtle Johnson lived.
They moved around before settling into a bigger house in Springwood Avenue near the city centre, where they still live now.
The couple had six children together - Hugh, Victor, the late Desmond, Andrene, Sandra and Petula.
From there, they got 16 grandchildren, 16 great-grandchildren and one great-great-grandchild.
Sybil said: “George is very kind-hearted and loving. He is someone who just loves his family and because of that, I just love him more.”
When asked what he loves about Sybil, George, a retired typewriter engineer, wisely responded: “Everything!”
