I have been married for 42 years, but unlike so many of you I did not marry my best friend. If I had married my best friend 42 years ago, I would have married my best high school friend Mike Bohm. I was 24 when I married an 18-year-old young woman.
I married Connie Lou Wolff because she was cute, smart and sexy! I loved spending time with her and her family. My future father in-law Norm and mother In-law Rosetta were both awesome, and we miss both of them daily. Her brother Dan and I were hunting buddies and remain so to this day. I enjoyed being with Connie and was at her house regularly. I felt that I wanted to spend 24 hours a day with her and she felt the same. Her parents and mine said that we were too young, but young love won out!
Connie and I got married on February 4, 1978. We were married at St. James in Shawano with a reception following at Pleschek’s Pavilion. Music was not with a DJ playing Rock’n Roll but with a family band called Hauser’s, and they played polkas. The food was provided by the family and prepared by the crew at Pleschek’s under the supervision of Mary Runge. Mary asked how many we expected and then told us how many pounds of potatoes, meat and vegetables were needed. Rosetta and other family members started peeling potatoes days before the wedding. Security (we needed that) at Pleschek’s was provided by Don Baumgartner
We had 6 inches of snow on our wedding day, but that did not matter, because we still had about 600 guests. I was not Mister Fun, and I only allowed one kiss following clinking on water glasses. Another tradition back then was to leave the reception and go bar hopping. Connie and I decided long before the wedding not to do that, because we reasoned that all of these people were coming to help us celebrate our wedding, so we would stay and talk to, and dance with, as any as we could. Connie and I went to church at Stony Hill the following morning.
I proposed to Connie, and we got engaged at her senior prom. She had planned to attend college for two years in Marshfield, and then we would get married just after her graduation. That summer she broke her leg and on top of it, got a kidney infection which landed her in the hospital. Because of her illness she missed the beginning of school that fall.
For some reason when she was not able to attend school in Marshfield, she lost her scholarship money. I said not to worry, that I would pay for her schooling which would begin March 1978. Sometime in October 1977 we decided to get married before she was to begin school at NWTC in Green Bay. We announced our wedding plans at a Wolff family function. Well, that created a firestorm of relatives assuming that we had to get married because Connie was pregnant. Human nature is funny.
Connie is the unselfish steady rock in our marriage. When we had emotional discussions she would stop debating, and a day or so later I would find a letter explaining her position and highlighting my faults. She was always correct.
She supported my endeavors. This led to numerous jobs and failures. Throughout that, she was always the steady rock. Eventually, I ended up at the US Post Office and back in the military through the Wisconsin National Guard.
Connie and I have two wonderful children. Amber is now married to Brady and they live in Brillion. Recently we were blessed with our first grandchild Eliana Rose on December 17, 2019. Mike lives in Shawano, and he and I have been hunting in South Africa twice.
I refer to Connie as the pioneer woman. Because of my time in the military she was left to manage the house and growing family on her own. Shortly after 911, I was mobilized and during that mobilization commanded two combat units in Iraq. After I returned from Iraq, I was a full Colonel and had responsibility to train units heading to combat. Because of my military responsibilities I was gone an average of 6 months per year. The pioneer woman/ solid rock Connie was left to manage on her own.
I retired from the military 31 December 2013, but still had my job as postmaster of Kaukauna. I could have retired, but Connie would have had to continue to work. I promised Connie that I would continue to work until we could retire together. You can see from how selfish I was, and how unselfish Connie was, that I owed her that.
My best friend Connie and I retired a few years ago. We finish each other’s sentences or think the same thing at the same time and laugh. I cannot imagine having succeeded to the level that I did without my wife and best friend Connie Lou. We know that God has blessed us, but I feel that he has blessed me more because I get to see my good looking best friend Connie Lou every day.
Benjamin Franklin – Keep your eyes wide open before marriage, half shut afterwards.