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Carol Stream Couples Celebrate 1,000 Combined Years Of Marriage

CHICAGO (CBS) -- A Valentine's Day lunch in the western suburbs Friday afternoon celebrated more than 1,000 years' worth of marriage.

Belmont Village, an assisted living facility for seniors in Carol Stream, hosted a Valentine's lunch for all 17 couples living there; complete with flowers, a piano player, and sparkling cider.

Each couple has been married for at least 48 years.

Bobbi Johnson sat across from her husband of 54 years.

"His boss told his father that he had a cute girl working for him in the bookstore, and so Jerry came by to check me out," she said.

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With 58 years of wedded bliss behind him, Ed Finn said the secret is simple.

"I think you just have to sort of compromise, like anything else in life, you know? But she's been easy to live with, so I think it'll last another 58 years," he said.

One staffer at Belmont Village said they wanted to celebrate the unique circumstance of having so many married couples together at this stage of their lives.

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