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Independence, MO —
Call it romance by chance.
Or, perhaps, Cupid does exist at the Palmer Center in Independence where at least three active couples have met, fallen in love and married in the senior center’s nearly eight-year history.
Whatever the case, Harry and Margaret Burt both say they didn’t expect to fall in love again – let alone marry anyone else – following the deaths of their longtime spouses.
Harry, who is known as the comedian of the Palmer Center, says he couldn’t even remember who was supposed to do the asking when it came to setting up a first date.
He hadn’t asked out a woman in more than 50 years.
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Those who know Harry Burt best would probably doubt that he was ever shy at any point in his 77 years.
But shortly before Valentine’s Day three years ago, Harry approached Peggy Sowders, the Palmer Center’s senior adult programs specialist, and asked if he should invite a date to Cupid’s Corner. Sowders had created the one-day event a year earlier as a comfortable setting for Palmer Center couples to enjoy a romantic dinner.
“And I said, ‘Of course you should. Do you have somebody in mind?’” Sowders says.
Harry had someone in mind: Margaret. The two had volunteered side by side at the center’s kitchen, preparing lunches and homebound meals, but they knew nothing about each other.
“I didn’t know what to do,” Harry says. “(Sowders) told me to behave myself, and I didn’t even know what to do. I hadn’t even wrote a check for 50 years.”
Margaret says she didn’t even know Harry was single.
He had first married at age 19. His wife, Mary, was 17. They met because Mary’s father was Harry’s Scoutmaster. Harry served the U.S. Navy for 2 years, 6 months and 15 days during the Korean War.
Harry and Mary Burt were married for 50 years and 8 days before her death. They had four children together.
Margaret and her husband, Lee, met through mutual friends. The couple just missed the half-century mark: They were married 47 years and one week before Lee’s death in 2006. They had two children together.
As Margaret remembers it, Harry apologized as he asked out Margaret, saying it had been more than 50 years since he had had a first date. “He was kinda shy,” Margaret says of her husband’s demeanor that day.
Call it romance by chance.
Or, perhaps, Cupid does exist at the Palmer Center in Independence where at least three active couples have met, fallen in love and married in the senior center’s nearly eight-year history.
Whatever the case, Harry and Margaret Burt both say they didn’t expect to fall in love again – let alone marry anyone else – following the deaths of their longtime spouses.
Harry, who is known as the comedian of the Palmer Center, says he couldn’t even remember who was supposed to do the asking when it came to setting up a first date.
He hadn’t asked out a woman in more than 50 years.
–––
Those who know Harry Burt best would probably doubt that he was ever shy at any point in his 77 years.
But shortly before Valentine’s Day three years ago, Harry approached Peggy Sowders, the Palmer Center’s senior adult programs specialist, and asked if he should invite a date to Cupid’s Corner. Sowders had created the one-day event a year earlier as a comfortable setting for Palmer Center couples to enjoy a romantic dinner.
“And I said, ‘Of course you should. Do you have somebody in mind?’” Sowders says.
Harry had someone in mind: Margaret. The two had volunteered side by side at the center’s kitchen, preparing lunches and homebound meals, but they knew nothing about each other.
“I didn’t know what to do,” Harry says. “(Sowders) told me to behave myself, and I didn’t even know what to do. I hadn’t even wrote a check for 50 years.”
Margaret says she didn’t even know Harry was single.
He had first married at age 19. His wife, Mary, was 17. They met because Mary’s father was Harry’s Scoutmaster. Harry served the U.S. Navy for 2 years, 6 months and 15 days during the Korean War.
Harry and Mary Burt were married for 50 years and 8 days before her death. They had four children together.
Margaret and her husband, Lee, met through mutual friends. The couple just missed the half-century mark: They were married 47 years and one week before Lee’s death in 2006. They had two children together.
As Margaret remembers it, Harry apologized as he asked out Margaret, saying it had been more than 50 years since he had had a first date. “He was kinda shy,” Margaret says of her husband’s demeanor that day.
She said yes, “and they were together from that day forward,” Sowders says. “I never saw them apart. They’re inseparable. ‘OK, you two, unlatch your hands. It’s time to go to work.’”
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Margaret likes that she and Harry share many common interests. They play cards. They volunteer together. They enjoy listening to gospel music, and they attend monthly Lamplighters meetings at Maywood Baptist Church.
“We just match,” Margaret, 73, says.
And she means that. Sowders says the couple often dresses alike in the same colors, though Friday was an off day because Harry didn’t own a red long-sleeved shirt like Margaret was wearing.
She hadn’t even planned on following in love after Lee, Margaret says, “but I think that Cupid’s arrow really struck this time.”
Each year, reservations for Cupid’s Corner fill up immediately, Sowders says. About 12 couples enjoy their lunch in the decorated game room.
Margaret says they toast to good health and the future in wine glasses filled with non-alcoholic sparkling cider. Sowders even covers the doors’ windows and places a sign that states, “Cupid at work. Keep out.”
Harry and Margaret dated for seven months. As Margaret remembers, the proposal was simple. Harry said something to the effect of: “I think we ought to get married. Everyone at Palmer says we should.”
The Palmer Center regulars had already planned the Burts’ wedding when they were still just dating, Margaret says.
They married Sept. 5, 2009, in a simple ceremony. A year later, Harry and Margaret renewed their vows so family members could witness them “because a lot of them didn’t believe it,” Margaret says, laughing.
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Margaret tends to lean on the quiet side. Harry’s the outgoing one.
“Harry’s always the comedian anyhow,” Margaret says, smiling. “(I love) his orneriness, his silliness. In a lot of ways, he reminds me of my dad. My dad was always comical, too.”
Winnie Townsend, the Palmer Center’s nutrition side aide who oversees volunteers like the Burts, calls Harry “the life of the kitchen.”
Margaret prefers to call him “the life of the Palmer Center.”
“He’s also known for untying our aprons,” Townsend says. “He’s tried to get away with that.”
Harry giggled Friday, trying to place the blame on his good friend and fellow volunteer, Fred Jeffers. The women just giggled right back at Harry’s playful nature.
Before Harry, Margaret says, she was a bit lonely. She lived alone and didn’t have anyone to eat with regularly.
Life is different now.
“We were just meant for each other,” Margaret says. “I roll over during the night just to make sure he’s OK, and he if wakes up, he tells me that he loves me, and I tell him that I love him.”
But Sowders doesn’t want any credit for playing Cupid at the Palmer Center.
“It just happens,” Sowders says. “What a great thing and what a great testament that it doesn’t matter how old you are, you want to find a partner to share your life with.”
