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As you may have seen elsewhere in this paper, my parents, Ron and Diane Dunn, just celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary. This milestone in their lives, especially in these days of quickie marriages and even quicker divorces, to me is amazing.
Better parents I couldn’t have asked for, although during my teenage years I didn’t think so. But I, like most teenagers then and now, couldn’t see beyond the door to my room, which like my mind, was usually closed. But most of us come around to realizing that what our parents did for us they did out of love and to make sure we were as well protected as we could be.
While raising kids nowadays is no cakewalk, I count my blessings that I don’t have to raise them back in the sixties and seventies when my parents were going through the motions. While now we have too much information, back then the world was changing so radically that the rules that they were brought up with flew right out of the window. Compared to when I was growing up, my kids don’t stand a chance because as the saying goes, been there, done that.
Ronald William Dunn and Diane Lee Miller were wed in San Gabriel at what was then the First Methodist Church on April 4th 1954. After a brief time in the city of La Puente they moved here with their two children, Bill and Susan, to the lovely city of Temple in 1959 where they have resided ever since. A year later the children became three with the arrival of Jill in 1960 and the family was complete.
Growing up in the Dunn household was typical of the time. Lincoln Logs and red wagons were the toys of choice, unlike my kids’ love for Playstation and computer games. Ron owned his own business, a prosperous and well-respected machine shop in nearby El Monte. Diane was a housewife with a flair for crafts and interior design, a genetic gift inherited from her mother.
They shared a love for the outdoors and for many years they loved to travel to Mexico for family vacations where we would camp out and ride motorcycles and dune buggies with families who shared like interests. When the summer months rolled around, the entire family would make its migration to our Nirvana to the North in the High Sierras. It was a very fortunate lifestyle that they provided and I will be eternally grateful.
After the last of us kids had finally flown the coop to start lives of our own, Ron and Diane didn’t slow down. One lesson I learned from my dad is that age doesn’t matter. Ron decided, in his mid fifties, that he wanted to learn to fly and with a dedicated resolve he did so.
After Ron decided to sell his business and retire it was as though the gate had been lifted and they were off to the races. Never ones to sit idly by they embarked on a retirement that most of us only wish we could. Traveling, relaxing, flying from spot to spot, and finding new things to enrich their lives, which with the variety of interests they have was not a problem.
Diane, who for many years we referred to as “Martha” after Martha Stewart, has an amazing ability to decorate a dining room table as though royalty was coming and is always creating inventive decorations and floral arrangements. After mastering all of the usual crafts that most people try she felt the need to kick it up a notch, so she began weaving. Not by hand mind you but with a full size loom which now occupies the majority of my old bedroom. By the way, we are looking for a new nickname for her in light of recent events marring Martha Stewart’s name, so let me know if you’ve got one.
Ron’s love of flying led them to Bahia de Los Angeles which is a small fishing village approximately a third of the way down Baja California. In addition to the locals, the town is populated by quite a few American pilots who were drawn there initially by the fact it had a paved runway. They are a tight knit community who enjoy each other’s company and it has become a second home for them. Recently, they have, in conjunction with Temple City National Little League, adopted the local women’s softball league. The Married Woman’s Softball League of Bahia De Los Angeles to be exact.
One thing I can say about my parents is that they are a couple that always gets involved. Whether it was Diane’s involvement for years with the PTA, Ron’s dedication to the Boy Scout program, or their combined involvement with the Flying Samaritans, they have always been more than willing to give their time to a worthwhile cause. I think this is what keeps them feeling young and their relationship fresh.
So thank you mom and dad for your inspiration, support, and generosity. You have given me something to strive for. You have earned and deserve all of the happiness that you enjoy. I hope you will continue to enjoy it for the next 50 years.
The Shrub Speaks: You know, I want to follow what Bob said. He said a great gift from a parent is two things. One, a good education and unconditional love. Unconditional love. El Dorado, Arkansas, Apr. 6, 2004
B.D.’s Response: So Dubya, what is number 2?
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