Lasting Love - Kenneth and Lavonne Vance

Kenneth and Lavonne Vance will celebrate 67 years of marriage on May 14.
     The couple first met at a music contest in New Hampton. Lavonne, a sophomore, played a piano solo, and Kenneth sang the tenor part in his high school quartet. Her brother, who seemed to know everyone, introduced them. But Lavonne (Frey) lived in Allison and Kenneth in Clarksville, and considering the distance, they didn’t stay in touch.
     “In those days, Clarksville and Allison were 10 miles apart, and that was a long way away,” said Lavonne Vance.
     Kenneth graduated from Clarksville high school in May 1947, and was employed at Vance Family Dairy. He and his brothers and cousins lived on the family farm where they were raised by their grandparents. Three aunts and an uncle also lived on the farm—in total he came from a household of 14. The family milked around 40 purebred Jerseys and delivered bottled milk to homes throughout Clarksville.
 
Read more in the February 15 edition of the STAR.