CRESTVIEW — Successful marriages require more than one ingredient, longtime residents Jack and Barbara Drasko will tell you.
“There (are) a lot of things that go into it, but the main thing is love, trust and respect for one another,” Jack, 83, said.
He and his wife are celebrating 60 years of wedded bliss.
Barbara, 76, shared a list of qualities that contribute to lasting relationships.
“You support each other,” she said. “You never belittle one another … you build each other up.”
Also important? Working together to raise a family, communication and giving each other some space.
The couple, who met on a blind date, married in 1954 and moved from Alabama to Crestview in 1965. Jack was Okaloosa County's supervisor and Barbara stayed at home to raise their four children and enjoy her arts and crafts hobby.
Now, the couple have 12 grandchildren and 18 great-grandchildren. Many family members, traveling from as far as Utah and California, attended an Aug. 9 anniversary celebration in their honor at Warriors Hall.
Crestview resident Miriama Devine, born in Hawaii, performed a couple of Hawaiian dances. Other family members and friends celebrated the occasion with singing heartfelt music.
They were just giving back to a couple who gave them so much, family members said.
“My grandparents helped raise us,” Devine said. “There would be many times when we would miss the bus and they would come and pick us up and take us to school.”
Marcia Drasko-Fox, the couple's daughter, said she believes their commitment to family had something to do with their lasting relationship.
“I think the key to a strong marriage is a strong family,” she said.
Email News Bulletin Staff Writer Matthew Brown, follow him on Twitter or call 850-682-6524.
This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: 'LOVE, TRUST AND RESPECT' Crestview couple celebrates 60 years of wedded bliss
