LIONEL and Lorraine Murphy have been through a lot over the past 60 years.
They’ve raised two children, faced four cancer diagnoses and a stroke, and left their long-time family home in St Albans.
But on November 29, they will put it all behind them to celebrate their 60th wedding anniversary.
They met when Lorraine was 16 and working in a takeaway shop where Lionel bought his lunch every day. After dating for five years Lionel proposed. They were married in 1952 at St Mary’s Star of Sea in West Melbourne.
Lionel says the marriage didn’t get off to the best start, with their wedding day held during a beer strike which almost resulted in a dry reception. Then, the couple arrived at their honeymoon accommodation in Healesville to find no one was home.
“We knocked on the door for ages and went round the back but there was no answer, so we jumped in the first taxi coming along the road and went back to [Lorraine’s] mum’s. The first thing she said when she saw us was ‘have you had a fight already?”‘
The Murphys spent the first few years renting in the western suburbs and had two children, Shane and Michael. When they bought their first home in St Albans, they were the first family to move into the street.
Lionel says no particular moment in their marriage stands out, with every year being special. Six years ago they moved to Werribee to be closer to family.
In recent years Lionel has battled cancer in his throat, nose and bladder and had part of his kidney removed.
Together, they have also handled Lorraine suffering a stroke, which saw her move into Manor Court Aged Care, and a recent cancer diagnosis. But she says it will take more to separate them, with Lionel visiting every day from 10am-4pm.
Lionel says the secret to their long marriage is that he worked 12-hour shifts and was never home. “Because I was never home I courted [Lorraine] again when I retired. One day I was helping her put on support socks and for a bit of fun I proposed again and she said yes.”
