Ohio Couple Turns 100 Together After Celebrating 79th Anniversary: ‘We’ve Had a Wonderful Life’

An Ohio couple recently celebrated turning 100 at the same church they met at 81 years ago after celebrating their 79th-anniversary in June.

June and Hubert Malicote were both born in rural Kentucky ten days apart on July 13, 1922, and July 23, 1922, respectively. Both eventually made their way to Hamilton, Ohio, while searching for work, where they met each other at Eaton Road Church one evening.

“Miraculously the back pew was empty, so, we went in and they were all standing and right in front of us was a pew full of young girls. And, she looked around at me and smiled,” Hubert told WLWT.

After meeting at church a few times, they eventually went on their first date a few days later at the county fair, but it did come with an awkward moment – at least for Hubert.

“I didn’t really know what to do, I was just barely 19 and kind of a country boy. And I thought, ‘She’s looking pretty dressed in red,'” Hubert told Fox News. “I reached over and hugged her a little bit and gave her a kiss.”

Feeling nervous, Hubert immediately ran out the door.

After that seemingly embarrassing moment, and with no other way to contact her, Hubert decided to go to Church the next day to see if she was there, and “everything was all right” between them, he told WKRC.

June and Hubert continued their courtship and wedded in the same church on June 8, 1943.

Having already enlisted in the U.S. Navy in 1942 and being stationed in Rhode Island previously, Hubert was then deployed to Pearl Harbor for two years after their wedding.

During his years in Hawaii, June joined the war effort back home by building war goods at a machinery company but recalled not enjoying the little communication they had while worrying about his well-being.

“That was terrible,” June told the Washington Post.

The couple still wrote letters to each other, and Hubert eventually returned home in 1945 while June waited for him at a train station in Indiana.

I hope I live to one day see 100 flaming candles 🎂 check out this cake!!! pic.twitter.com/UplNpVJLYD

— Jenna Cisneros (@JennaCisnerosTV) July 19, 2022

The Malicotes settled back in Hamilton, where they raised three children and now have seven grandchildren and 11 great-grandchildren.

While noting they had disagreements, June admitted something remarkable about their 79-year-long marriage. “We have not even had a quarrel,” she told Fox News.

Their daughter, Jo, confirmed the claim.

“I never so much as even heard a harsh word spoken between the two of them,” she told the Post. “It was almost as though every day was a date. They just took care of each other.”

While June has suffered a few strokes recently, the couple has kept a consistent routine that includes sharing a kiss before going to bed each night and enjoying weekly date nights at home, per Today.

“We’ve never really gone out much. When the kids were younger we were happy sitting around the table sharing stories about our day,” Hubert said. “We’ve had a wonderful life.”

The Malicotes celebrated turning 100 on July 15 at the same church where they met in 1941, withroughly 130 guests attending, Fox News noted.

You can follow Ethan Letkeman on Twitter at @EthanLetkeman.