SHORT GAP, W.Va. — A wonderful day of celebration was held on Aug. 8, 2009, to honor Marvin and Christine Funkhouser of Short Gap on the occasion of their 50th wedding anniversary.

The couple was married on Aug. 21, 1959, at Sunnyside Church of the Brethren, New Creek, by the Rev. Owen Stultz. Their attendants were Christine’s uncle and aunt, Robert and Sadie Brill of New Creek. Granville Combs, Christine’s 84 year old grandfather, was present for his granddaughter’s wedding. Having had a family of 11 children and 45 grandchildren, Christine’s was the only wedding he had ever attended.

Christine is the daughter of the late Ina (Combs) and J.B. Fletcher of Winchester, Va. She was raised by her maternal grandparents, Granville and Rachel Combs, Needmore. Marvin is the son of the late Marvin, Sr. and Eva (Wilkins) Funkhouser, Needmore.

Marvin and Christine are the parents of a son, Keith Lynn Funkhouser, New Creek, and a daughter, Diane Reneé (Funkhouser) Kile, Short Gap. They have two grandchildren, Stephen Keith Funkhouser, Wheeling, and Amanda Christine Funkhouser, Frostburg, Md. They also have two children-in-law, Keith’s wife, Teresa Ann (Kesner) Funkhouser, and Diane’s husband, Donald Ray Kile, and a granddaughter-in-law, Stephen’s wife, Nina (Yokochi) Funkhouser.

Marvin retired in 2000 from Kelly-Springfield Tire Company, having worked as a tire testing technician. Christine is a homemaker and enjoys sewing, cooking and caring for her family.

The celebration was held at the Family Life Center of Central Assembly of God, Cumberland, Md., where a sit-down dinner was catered by Karen Hanson of Kingdom Catering, Frostburg, and served by the youth group of Central Assembly of God Church, led by Courtney Hicks, the youth pastor’s wife. Twenty-eight tables were decorated in ivory and gold with centerpieces consisting of a water-filled vase holding 50 gold and clear marble rocks and alternating with either a single gold taper burning candle or an ivory floating rosebud. There were chocolate favors for each guest in ivory tulle tied with a gold ribbon. A beautiful ivory rose centerpiece with greens, placed in a crystal bowl, complimented the table of the couple and their family. The centerpiece, along with all the flowers used in decorating, were given as a gift by Wanda Umstot of the Flower Patch and Little Patches of Country, LaVale, Md., and her husband, Roger.

Guests were greeted by the couple and their family beginning at noon, followed by the dinner at 1 p.m. Following the dinner, a seven-tier anniversary cake, made by Shelby Gable, and decorated by the couple’s daughter-in-law, Teresa, was served by the youth group. The cake was decorated with ivory roses, grapes, pearls, greens, ivory icing and topped with intertwined ivory hearts surrounded by gold tulle and roses.

The couple was the recipient of three “special surprises” during the event. The first was a gift from their son, Keith, and his family, which took place before the guests arrived. They had a photographer from Beitzel Studio take a family portrait. The second surprise came during the greeting of the guests. Hedy (Peters) Pletz, a pen pal with whom Christine has corresponded for 54 years, flew in from Fresno, Calif., with her husband, Vern, to surprise Christine and Marvin on this very special day. Christine and Hedy uniquely share the same birthday and have corresponded since they were 12 years old. Hedy is originally from Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, and she and Christine had met only once prior to this at Toronto, Canada in 1967.

A program was held following the dinner. Their son, Keith, was master of ceremony. Various people spoke about their relationship with the couple. Those who spoke were: Dave Brode, Frostburg, Marvin’s supervisor at Kelly Springfield; Everett Metheny, Short Gap, fire chief of Short Gap Volunteer Fire Company, where Marvin is chaplain and trustee; Donnie Wolford, Ridgeley, member of their church family and long-time friend; Gene Combs, Broadway, Va., Christine’s special first cousin; and Amy Feathers, Winchester, Va, niece of Marvin. Three songs were sung during the program. The first was “I Believe” sung by Pastor Shannon and Tira Lambert, music minister and his wife at Central Assembly, accompanied by Debbie Green on the keyboard. Their granddaughter, Amanda, sang the other two songs, “We Have This Moment” and their favorite song, “The Rose,” accompanied by their daughter-in-law, Teresa, on keyboard. During the meal, the guests and honored couple were serenaded by a harpist, Christina Defusco, with love songs and appropriate hymns.

The third surprise took place during the program. Their daughter, Diane, with the help of her husband, Donny, had prepared a beautiful picture presentation set to music of the couple, beginning with their childhood up until the present. Three songs accompanied the photos. The first section was photos from their childhood through their immediate family to the song “You Are So Beautiful.” The second section was photos of family and friends to the song “Because You Love Me.” The presentation ended with the song “To Me” and consisted of photos of places the couple had visited throughout their 50 years together.

The program closed with the harpist, Christina, playing a medley of hymns, “Amazing Grace,” “How Great Thou Art” and “The Hallelujah Chorus.”

The meal began with a blessing by the Rev. Larry Green and closed with a benediction in the form of a blessing for the couple and all who attended.

More than 200 family and friends gathered for the celebration, traveling from West Virginia, Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Ohio and California.

For their anniversary trip, the couple spent four nights at Nemacolin Woodlands Resort, Farmington, Pa., where they were joined by their family on Aug. 21, their actual anniversary, to enjoy a special dinner. In addition, the couple spent two nights at Bedford Springs Resort, Bedford, Pa., to culminate their 50th wedding anniversary celebration.

The couple received flags flown over the U.S. Capitol and West Virginia Capitol on Aug. 21, a letter of congratulations from Gov. Joe Manchin and Sen. Robert Byrd of West Virginia, the President of the United States and a special letter from Gov. Linge and Lt. Gov. Aiona of Hawaii, all brought about by their daughter and son-in-law, Diane and Donny. The couple was married the day Hawaii became a state. Their grandson, Stephen and bride, Nina, brought them two flags from Hawaii, the traditional flag and the official flag, to commemorate the combined 50th anniversary of the couple and the 50th birthday of Hawaii’s statehood.

In addition to their own celebration, the couple also gathered with 150 relatives at the Combs family reunion in the Community Center, Mathias, on July 12, where they, along with two of Christine’s first cousins, celebrated their 50th anniversaries. The couples were married within three weeks of each other. They were each honored with their cards, gifts and favorite songs. Also on Aug. 1, Marvin’s maternal side of the family held the Wilkins family reunion at Lost River State Park, Mathias, where they were honored with a cake and gifts.

Thank you to everyone who attended, sent cards, gifts, or helped in any way to make this day one of the most blessed days of Marvin and Christine Funkhouser’s lives.