Fully 93% of brides use the internet to plan their wedding. Not too many senior citizens are regularly using online sources, however, especially when it comes to planning a wedding.
With 1.97 billion users active worldwide, Facebook produces an incredible amount of data every second. And in the last week of June those active users certainly went crazy when an elderly couple uploaded their engagement photos to the Internet.
Lucinda Myers, 67, and Cleveland “Murphy” Wilson, 70, began dating in April after having met at a church in Huntsville, Alabama. “She swept me off my feet,” said Murphy to ABC News. “I just fell in love with this gorgeous woman. And of course she fell in love with me because of my charm and suave.”
One in every four adults experiences a fall annually, but for these two lovebirds the only ones they’re falling for are each other. After only a month of dating, Murphy asked Myers to marry him in May knowing he had found the one.
Many Americans will do everything in their power to maintain a youthful appearance — especially prior to a wedding or engagement photos. Dermal fillers are quite effective for reversing signs of aging, making them one of the top 5 cosmetic minimally invasive produces people undergo each year.
Murphy’s daughters, Danita Jones and Gina Woods, were the ones who encouraged the senior couple to take their engagement photos. “My daughters — and I love my daughters — they decided they were going to be wedding planners and put all of this together,” said Murphy. “They decided we should have a photo shoot in the downtown park of Huntsville.”
After the daughters posted the photos on Instagram, their popularity took off with almost 35,000 likes and a share by comedian Niecy Nash. “She told us to be ourselves,” said Murphy of photography Gianna Snell. “That wasn’t difficult because, quite frankly, we are so elated that we’ve found each other,” said Wilson. “You have these two senior citizens thinking they’re 16 and 17 years old. We just had a good time.”
Up to 65% of Americans feel special when receiving flowers, but no flowers were needed to light up the eyes of this couple. Snell captured the love and joy between Murphy and Myers on a sunny afternoon with photographs ranging from dancing to sitting on a bench by the water where the couple gazes into each other’s eyes. The sudden burst of shares, likes, and reblogs on social media shouldn’t be surprising as Snell’s photographs are an adorable catch of adoring love between two people.
To add to the sweetness, Myers admitted to never having had a real wedding. She recently purchased a wedding dress and has been hiding it from Murphy with the joy and delight of a young bride. “He has a beautiful smile,” said Myers. “I love him so much. We’re just so happy. I couldn’t have asked for a better mate.”
Myers also said she believes, “The Lord just put us together for a reason,” a belief Murphy shares in the aftermath of a heart-wrenching end to his first marriage. Murphy lost his wife, Antoinette, in 2013 after 41 years of a solid and loving marriage. Four years later, Murphy said he felt he still had a lot of love left to give and so he began praying for someone special.
“The answer to my prayer was sitting in the balcony with me for the last four years,” said Murphy.
The average American wedding has 165 guests, but the couple’s popularity may very well put them above average when their wedding ceremony commences on July 29. The location? The very church where Myers and Murphy met.
“I’ve been telling everybody that I have been blessed again,” said Murphy. “I never thought God would give me another fantastic mate and he has. I just didn’t think it would happen again.”
Photo credit Gianna Snell Photography.
