For Lynnwood couple, 96 and 85, living alone got old

  • By Andrea Brown Herald Writer
  • Monday, April 14, 2014 5:37pm
  • LifeLynnwood

These newlyweds have a good shot at making it till death do they part.

He’s 96.

She’s 85.

June Hansen and Rolland Meyer tied the knot March 8 at Quail Park retirement community after a yearlong courtship.

“I’m not pregnant,” she swears.

“People shouldn’t live alone,” Rolland said. “We decided we would hang out together.”

June corrects him: “We’re not just ‘hanging out together,’ my dear.”

She’s a bit more no-nonsense than her devil-may-care husband.

“He flirts too,” she said. “I’m trying to train him not to do that.”

The couple started a new life together by moving to Quail Park in Lynnwood in December from another assisted living center.

They had to wait for her divorce to be final to marry. June was divorced after 64 years of marriage. And, no, Rolland wasn’t the reason they split. It’s complicated, but he’s no home wrecker.

This is his fifth marriage.

“Each one my wives died,” he said. “The first from tuberculosis in 1947. She was only 27 years old. The next one got lung cancer. She was 44. My last wife died just two years ago. After 30 years.”

It didn’t deter June from becoming the fifth Mrs. Meyer.

“I could go before him,” she said. “I have Parkinson’s and it will get worse over the years. It’s not curable.”

Rolland has had three back operations, a stent and a pacemaker. He takes a baby aspirin and a multivitamin and uses a cane.

“He leans on me. I’m his second cane,” June said. “I like to hold his hand because it is more firm. People look at us and they think we are doing it because we are so in love.”

He still drives a car like he’s 16. He got a speeding ticket not long ago.

“It cost me $134,” he said.

They go for rides every day and sometimes all day. He proposed to her one night while driving in the rain.

Rolland, an Oak Harbor native, was a truck driver after serving with the 1st Cavalry Division in World War II. June was active in her church and worked in a print shop.

Together, they have seven children, ages 54 to 71. They each have a daughter named Carol.

“My daughters said I was too old to marry again,” Rolland said, “but they came around.”

Not too many folks get hitched at their age. According to Washington state Department of Health license records, in 2012, the latest figures available, out of a total of 43,238 marriages statewide, there were 17 brides who were 85 years or older and four grooms 95 or older.

There were only nine marriages statewide where both the bride and groom were 85 or older.

It was a first for Katie Matthews, activity director at Quail Park, where residents attended the reception after a private ceremony. “I’d never planned a wedding,” she said. “It was the most amazing experience. The photographer was so excited he did it all for free, and the lady who made the cake gave them a smokin’ deal.”

June’s son gave her away. Rolland’s daughter stood up with him.

“You should have seen me,” June said. “I had my makeup done.”

“She looked beautiful,” Rolland said.

“He says that to all the women,” she said.

“It makes them feel better,” he said.

Like all married couples, they have their spats.

“We’ve only had four arguments,” he said.

“We kiss and make up. Right away,” she said.

One squabble, if you could call it that, was when he left wet towels on the floor after soaking his sore foot in Lysol, a remedy she had her doubts about.

“How could he make such a mess in five minutes?” she said.

“I’ve been doing it for 96 years,” he said.

She hasn’t been able to change the casual way Rolland does his finances.

“I go to the bank every once in a while and say, ‘How much money do I got in there?’” he said.

She writes checks and keeps strict records.

They signed a prenuptial agreement and took stock of their belongings.

He had the bigger new bed. She had the better chairs.

Framed artworks made by one of his former wives hang over their bed.

“They’re pretty,” June said. “I have no problem with that.”

“It’s nice to a have a body there to sleep with,” Rolland said. “Living alone … it isn’t meant to be.”

Andrea Brown; 425-339-3443; abrown@heraldnet.com

Talk to us

> Give us your news tips.

> Send us a letter to the editor.

> More Herald contact information.

More in Life

Brandon Hailey of Cytrus, center, plays the saxophone during a headlining show at Madam Lou’s on Friday, Dec. 29, 2023 in Seattle, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Lynnwood-based funk octet Cytrus has the juice

Resilience and brotherhood take center stage with ‘friends-first’ band.

FILE - In this April 11, 2014 file photo, Neko Case performs at the Coachella Music and Arts Festival in Indio, Calif. Fire investigators are looking for the cause of a fire on Monday, Sept. 18, 2017, that heavily damaged Case’s 225-year-old Vermont home. There were no injuries, though a barn was destroyed. It took firefighters two hours to extinguish the blaze. (Photo by Scott Roth/Invision/AP, File)
Music, theater and more: What’s happening in Snohomish County

Singer-songwriter Neko Case, an indie music icon from Tacoma, performs Sunday in Edmonds.

Dominic Arizona Bonuccelli
Tangier’s market boasts piles of fruits, veggies, and olives, countless varieties of bread, and nonperishables, like clothing and electronics.
Rick Steves on the cultural kaleidoscope of Tangier in Morocco

Walking through the city, I think to myself, “How could anyone be in southern Spain — so close — and not hop over to experience this wonderland?”

chris elliott.
Vrbo promised to cover her rental bill in Hawaii, so why won’t it?

When Cheryl Mander’s Vrbo rental in Hawaii is uninhabitable, the rental platform agrees to cover her new accommodations. But then it backs out. What happened?

The Moonlight Swing Orchestra will play classic sounds of the Big Band Era on April 21 in Everett. (submitted photo)
Music, theater and more: What’s happening in Snohomish County

Relive the Big Band Era at the Port Gardner Music Society’s final concert of the season in Everett.

2024 Honda Ridgeline TrailSport AWD (Honda)
2024 Honda Ridgeline TrailSport AWD

Honda cedes big boy pickup trucks to the likes of Ford, Dodge… Continue reading

Would you want to give something as elaborate as this a name as mundane as “bread box”? A French Provincial piece practically demands the French name panetiere.
A panetiere isn’t your modern bread box. It’s a treasure of French culture

This elaborately carved French antique may be old, but it’s still capable of keeping its leavened contents perfectly fresh.

(Judy Newton / Great Plant Picks)
Great Plant Pick: Mouse plant

What: Arisarum proboscideum, also known as mouse plant, is an herbaceous woodland… Continue reading

Bright green Japanese maple leaves are illuminated by spring sunlight. (Getty Images)
Confessions of a ‘plantophile’: I’m a bit of a junky for Japanese maples

In fact, my addiction to these glorious, all-season specimens seems to be contagious. Fortunately, there’s no known cure.

2024 Hyundai IONIQ 6 Limited (Hyundai)
2024 Hyundai IONIQ 6 Limited

The 2024 Hyundai IONIQ 6 Limited is a sporty, all-electric, all-wheel drive sedan that will quickly win your heart.

The 2024 Dodge Hornet R/T hybrid’s face has the twin red lines signifying the brand’s focus on performance. (Dodge)
2024 Hornet R/T is first electrified performance vehicle from Dodge

The all-new compact SUV travels 32 miles on pure electric power, and up to 360 miles in hybrid mode.

Don’t blow a bundle on glass supposedly made by the Henry William Stiegel

Why? Faked signatures, reused molds and imitated styles can make it unclear who actually made any given piece of glass.

Support local journalism

If you value local news, make a gift now to support the trusted journalism you get in The Daily Herald. Donations processed in this system are not tax deductible.