For 80-year-old Lesley Blain and husband 82-year-old Ivan, of Ashburton, there are four keys to a long marriage.
The couple wed 60 years ago on September 19.
Their four keys, all beginning with the letter F, are a faith in God and each other, family, friends and forgiveness.
The couple married at Baring Square Methodist Church in Ashburton, two years after meeting at a dance at the former Radiant Hall in Ashburton. A reception followed at the Tinwald Hall.
‘‘It was a very happy day,’’ Lesley said.
At the time Lesley was working for Doug Bowden an accountant of Ashburton. After marrying, she left to set up an office for her father who owned the Tinwald Service Station. As a trained book keeper, she also did part-time worked for Dr McKenzie.
Ivan worked at NZ Farmers Coop as a junior stock agent. Following their wedding he bought his father’s school bus run in Lauriston and grew the business, taking on charter bus runs mainly around the South Island.
With a huge mortgage, the couple worked hard together to make a success of the business.
While on a bus trip to Blenheim, Ivan got the call no parent wants. His 15-month-old daughter had been taken to hospital with convulsions. She recovered, but the health scare served as a turning point for the Blains. Ivan had always wanted to own a farm, so they sold the bus business and purchased 180 acres at Winchmore, which they ran for three years as a cropping farm.
A real test in their marriage came when Ivan viewed a leasehold farm at Dunsandel. Knowing the farm’s neighbours were interested in the property, he signed up for the property and then headed home to inform Lesley what he had done.
‘‘It was a great decision that we made, and after the shock wore off Lesley was okay with the decision, because our marriage is based on trust,’’ Ivan said.
Due to Ivan’s health, after 23 years on the farm they sold it and moved back to Ashburton.
While living in the Selwyn area, Ivan had been a Lion, played cricket into his 50s, enjoyed golf and was part of Federated Farmers. On their move to Ashburton, Ivan continued with cricket, joined Rotary, played at golf and joined the MSA men’s choir. He also worked for the Ashburton Trading Society to help bring in new members, before moving to work for Bede Cullen managing his buses fleet at Mid Canterbury Transport. When the business was sold they bought the contracts for five school bus runs.
For Lesley, an encounter with the Lord when she was 35 lead her to becoming a lay preacher. She continued this passion in Mid Canterbury, and she and Ivan joined St David’s in Ashburton. She undertook several roles with the church, including in women’s fellowship, and playing the organ and piano, something she still does for services today.
The couple said farming wasn’t always easy, especially in the late 1980s as interest on mortgages and penalty rates skyrocketed. At that time, the Blains supplemented their income by hosting tourists. ‘‘They were mostly Japanese university students and some Americans. We really enjoyed their delight in experiencing New Zealand farming life. We met some very nice people and learned about their lives and customs,’’ Lesley said.
They say their long marriage has been blessed by many miracles, includes through various health challenges they have encountered. One miracle that stands out was in the late 1980s.
‘‘A howling gale and 30 degree temperatures whipped up a fire in the Selwyn Planation, over the road from our farm. It was thought that the fire had been extinct from earlier in the week,’’ Lesley said. She looked out the window to see the flames leaping in the trees again. She ran out to see if the fire engines were there or people dealing to it. Realising she needed to raise the alarm, she turned around and came out of the trees. Ivan was coming up the drive at 60kmh, she didn’t hear his ute due to the winds.
‘‘Thanks to a miracle from God’’ he missed hitting her by a split second.
Ivan and Lesley moved into Lochlea Lifestyle Resort three years ago. They enjoy being surrounded by the love of their family. They have three children, two daughters and a son, along with nine grandchildren and three great grandchildren, who all live in New Zealand.
