Dec. 27, 1952, high school sweethearts Bob and Edna Russell started a life together in Birmingham. Sixty years of marriage later, they say it feels like yesterday.

“To us, it’s been a very short 60 years,” Bob said.

Edna said the best aspect of marriage has been the companionship.

“We have a oneness,” she said. “You don’t often see him without me or me without him.”

Having mutual love and respect are essential for a successful marriage, but Edna said she believes marriage is a gift from God.

“You’ve got to have God at the center of your marriage,” she said.  

The couple met at Ensley High School in Birmingham when they were in 11^th grade.

“He worked in the cafeteria, and I saw him standing over there, and I said, ‘I’m going to marry that guy,’” Edna said.

Marriage is often filled with happiness, Edna said, but happiness isn’t the goal — it just happens along the way.

“Happiness is not a destination, it’s a mode of travel,” she said.

Bob joined the Air Force after high school, and the couple spent the first few years of their marriage moving around the country.

After four years of service as a radio operator, Bob got out of the air force and finished his degree in industrial management. In 1957, he graduated from Alabama Polytechnic Institute, which would officially become Auburn University three years later.

For the next 40 years, Bob worked in Birmingham as a plant manager and a plant engineer. He and Edna also operated a catering business and a produce stand. In 2000, the Russells moved to Foley to retire, fulfilling a dream they had shared for many years — retiring to the beach.

They enjoy most everything about Baldwin County, except that it is far away from their two sons and their families. Rusty, the oldest, lives in Houston, Texas, and Jack lives in Knoxville, Tenn. The Russells have three granddaughters and three great-granddaughters.  

Soon after moving to Foley, Bob and Edna joined First Baptist Church of Foley, where they are still members. They are involved with the church’s Family Crisis Center, which provides food, clothing and limited financial assistance to families in need.

“We’ve developed a lot of compassion for people through that, and we’re happy about that,” he said.

The couple also volunteers at South Baldwin Regional Medical Center one day a week. Edna works in registration, and Bob works in the lab. He has accrued 2,200 hours of service over 11 years.

“It’s very satisfying,” Bob said.

The Russells started volunteering at the hospital in 2001 after Bob recovered from an aortic valve replacement and then six months of treatment for prostate cancer.

“He said to me one day, ‘I’d like to give back. I’d like to start volunteering. Would you like to do it, too?’” Edna said. “It’s been wonderful, because as we get older, we need to stay busy.”

Jennifer Hughes, lab secretary at South Baldwin Regional, said Bob and Edna help get the patients through the system more quickly and efficiently. She said she is constantly amazed that even at their age, they are still willing and able to help others.

“It’s wonderful working with him,” she said. “He and his wife both are just wonderful people. He’s always kind and never has a cross word to say about anyone.”