Anniversary of Warnham couple who met at war dances

Pam and Gerald Etherton explained they still share the occasional dance, after the pair courted at wartime dances organised as entertainment for young people.

Ahead of their blue sapphire anniversary, Pam, 87, said the pair are ‘very lucky’ to have each other.

She said: “The time goes and you don’t really realise, you don’t think much about it.

“We have been very lucky. We just sort of saw each other and met up at the dances, that is how it worked in those days.”

The couple wed at St John’s Church in Springfield Road in the snow in 1950.

They have lived in the same house in Bell Road, Warnham, for more than 50 years, and have three children, six grandchildren and five great-grandchildren.

Gerald, 86, said there was no particular secret behind the pair’s long and happy marriage.

He said: “We just get on. We used to like dancing together a little bit.”

Pam and Gerald still dance together at Cranleigh Social Club, though Gerald admitted ‘we can’t jive like we used to!’

After Gerald completed his national service, he began a career that included working for an insurance company and a bank. Pam worked in nursing during the final years of the war - she also worked in Horsham Hospital and for a local shop.

The couple said they would be celebrating the anniversary with a small celebration with family.