People wound up at the senior living facility. - Bernie (100) and Marjorie (102) boast the title of the world's eldest married couple.
Couples gathered beneath a wedding canopy as the groom, a hundred-year-old man named Bernie Littman, slowly stood up from his wheelchair. As if in a perfect reenactment of a centuries-old tradition, he shattered a glass right above his head, symbolically reliving the destruction of the temple in Jerusalem. Surrounding them were family and friends celebrating his union with his bride, Marjorie Fiterman, their combined age of 202 years.
The scene seemed reminiscent of a traditional Jewish ceremony, but this wasn't just any ordinary wedding. In the state of Pennsylvania, Bernie and Marjorie were setting the record for the oldest couple to tie the knot ever since Doreen and George Kirby, a couple from England, were married in 2015 at the age of 194.
When they gazed into each others' eyes, they radiated with joy and affection. Rabbi Adam Wohlberg witnessed their love, remarking that "their smiles are a testament to the happiness they find in each other's presence."
Flashback to a time in the past, they might have been together at the University of Pennsylvania. Bernie was pursuing a degree in engineering, while Marjorie was studying advanced education. But it wasn't until 2014 that the universe aligned them - both were wheelchair-bound residents of the same care home - located in Philadelphia. Sarah, granddaughter to Bernie, recalled the meeting: "Back in 2014, they encountered one another in passing on the corridor floors of their respective care centers." Bernie's first wife had died two years before, while Marjorie was previously widowed since 1999.
As Bernie's relatives recounted the story, they shared how the couple determined they genuinely liked spending time together. Initially, they enjoyed attending performances at the theater and visiting exhibits in museums. They also began regularly playing cards, given their shared situation of confinement to wheelchairs.
After a decade as a loving duo, they decided to exchange vows. As Sarah described it, "They decided to marry since they wished to reside together, constantly clinging to their old-fashioned beliefs on marriage."
Asked about their feelings for one another, Bernie embraced simplicity: "I love everything about him." Marjorie exclaimed giddily, "He's everything a woman could ever desire." Desiring a peaceful, beautiful future, they mentioned that they sought "plenty of moments together - precious tranquil ones."
Addressing the harsh realities uncomfortable for their elders, Bernie's granddaughter admitted, "They wouldn't want to hear about the horrors Hamas inflicted upon Israel in October, or the constant anti-Semitism,
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Source: symclub.org
