Luther Younger is not going to let a little distance stop him from remaining true to his marriage vows.
Just one verse each day.
At 99 years old, Luther Younger is still taking his marital vows seriously. The devoted husband has been married to Waverlee for 55 years, and throughout her numerous hospitalizations in recent years, Younger has always made sure he is by her side — even if that involves a six-mile trek through his hometown of Rochester, New York, to get to the hospital where she is currently staying, recovering from pneumonia.
While many of us might think of hopping on a bus, or accepting a lift, Younger is impatient to get to his sick wife and doesn’t want to wait around. “I got a wife. I don’t want to wait on the bus. I want to go up there to see my wife,” he says. So he sets off with his deep love guiding and encouraging him along the way.
In fact, Younger recently explained to a reporter from CBS News, who went down to accompany the nonagenarian on one of his walks, that these six miles give him some thinking time, to reflect on their marriage and his beloved wife. And while taking part in the walk, the impressively fit Younger was sure to point out to the reporter: “I don’t want to talk about nothing except my wife,” who he lovingly refers to as his “sweet cup of tea.”
As he approaches a whole century, Younger is extraordinary in his strength and ability to walk such a distance — which sometimes turns into a run as he nears the hospital. Yet the veteran Marine, who still has the ability to get down on the floor and do push-ups, has never been shy of hard labor; he has spent his life working hard. It’s a strength shared by his wife, according to Younger’s daughter Lutheta. Younger is quick to point out that it was his wife’s strength and inspiration that was responsible for “making a man” out of him.
With Waverlee now paralyzed from a brain tumor that developed nine years ago, it’s now up to her husband to be strong enough for the two of them. And it would seem that the vow they made over half a century ago to live together in sickness and in health remains just as strong today.
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