Sitting together talking of the day they said I do, the couples love for each other was evident by holding hands and sharing the laughter and stories of their lives.

Mr Raven said it was love at first sight when he saw Mrs Raven, nee Milley, at a ball in Bealiba.

"Lurl was on the other side of the hall and she had this lovely smile on her face," he said.

"I was smiling back. She was waiting for me to ask for a dance. I could only do the Pride of Erin and the Barndance.

"What I was frightened of was it would turn into a foxtrot at the end of it."

Mr Raven said after the dance everyone went out to supper.

"I was talking to Lurl and I asked her if I could walk her home, and she said yes," he said.

"I had a couple of mates who I went with. No sooner as I took her home, gave her a little kiss I had to hop in the car and go back to Dunolly.

"It was just love at first sight, for both of us."

Mrs Raven said she would never forget the time she had to meet Mr Raven's family.

"I was more nervous meeting Clarrie's family than he was meeting mine," she chuckled.

"The first night I was at his house we were on the way to a ball and I can remember Clarrie was sitting getting ready.

"I was sitting in the lounge with his father while his mother was off doing something.

"Every time I happened to look over Clarrie's father was sitting there staring at me. I kept looking around thinking where would I look next and I would sneak a look back and he was just staring at me."

Mr and Mrs Raven were in a relationship for about 13 months before Mr Raven popped the question.

"I can remember asking Lurl's dad for her hand in marriage," he said.

"We went and chose the ring together. Then we just took it for granted that we were going to get married."

Mrs Raven said the wedding day went off without any hiccups.

"We went to Daylesford for three days for our honeymoon," she said.

"We borrowed Clarrie's brother's ute which I had to get out and push every time we wanted to get started."

Mr Raven said his biggest worry was the noise he could hear when he arrived at Daylesford.

"Someone had put pennies in the wheel caps," he said.

"We chose the date to get married because it fitted in with taking over a business in Watchem."

The couple said they felt "blessed" to have four children, 10 grandchildren, and six great-grandchildren with two more to add to that tally by the end of this year.

"We get a lot of enjoyment out of our great-grandchildren," Mr Raven said.

They both said they loved to garden and even took on growing chrysanthemums for shows.

"We won a lot of prizes for our chrysanthemums," Mr Raven said.

"It was year-long work doing them and getting them to grow big enough."

10 years ago Mr and Mrs Raven moved to Stawell and have settled into their home.

Mr Raven said the toughest time in their married life was when they lost their grandson, Dean.

"He was working in Western Australia and was involved in an accident," Mrs Raven said.

"It was a big bump in our life - our love and strength help us get through it. You never get over it.

"There isn't a day which goes by that you don't think of him."

Mrs Raven grew up in Bealiba and went on to Maryborough High School.

"We had to leave to catch the bus at 7.20am each morning," she said.

"In wintertime, it was dark when you were leaving and dark when you got home.

"We didn't get home from school until about 5.30pm."

Mr Raven was born in Dunolly and also attended Maryborough High School.

"I left school when I was 14. I think they were glad to see me go, I hated school," he said.

"I started working at the grocer's shop in Dunolly - delivering groceries and bags of spuds on the bike.

"I started an apprenticeship at the Baker's. It was hard yakka. Everything was done by hand."

Mr Raven said the couple have always done everything together.

"From going to the doctors, shopping, everything," he said.

"We have each other and that's the main thing.

"I've slowed down a bit, but Lurl still gets up on ladders and does the gardening. She says "you'll catch me".

"She's always sweeping up leaves and sometimes I think she's catching the leaves before they hit the ground."

Mr and Mrs Raven celebrated their anniversary, quietly, not ones wanting a big celebration.

"We had afternoon tea with the Mayor which was very special," Mrs Raven said.

"We went out for dinner and a drive back to Dunolly where we're from.

"After that, we have to get back to normal."

The couple both agreed they thought their love had grown stronger over the years.

"We don't have disagreements, but if we do, we just move on," Mrs Raven said.

"How strong you love each other is what gets you through any situation.

"We wouldn't have it any other way - sticking together through thick and thin."

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