Lisa, 49, met Bill, 53, at McDonald's in 1980. Within a month, they were married. Neither storm nor earthquake nor volcanic eruption could keep them apart. Today they live in Matthews, where Lisa tells their story: The redhead: I was barely 21, and had just been promoted at the radio station where I worked in sales. I was touring my new territory near Olympia, Wash., with my boss when we stopped for lunch at McDonald's. As I walked in, the young manager turned to his boss and said, "Look at the legs...
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Eric, 28, and Laura Beth, 23, were teacher and student when they met in college four years ago. An exam brought them together. They live in Charlotte, where Eric tells their story: The class: I met Laura Beth at Florida State University in spring 2004. I was a grad student. She was working on a bachelor's degree. Little did I know that Laura Beth knew me long before I met her. I was the instructor for a large lecture class in which she was a student.
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Helena, 39, likes to talk. Anthony, 41, likes being quiet. He also likes biking and running marathons, while she would rather stay indoors. They live in Charlotte now, but Helena says their life of opposites began in Kansas in 1989: The gas pump: We met at a gas station in Junction City, Kan., when I was 21 and Anthony was 22. We were at opposite gas pumps. I'm not sure what made me walk up to him and say hello. He looked confused. He also looked a lot like Tom Cruise.
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Joel met Wanda at a carwash in Wilmington in 2004. For 30 minutes, no other cars showed up. Joel remembers what happened next: The chance: There were no cars in front of Wanda and no cars behind me on a clear day in August at Cruisers carwash. We started talking. When I discovered she'd been previously married and was the mother of three boys -- one 26 -- I calculated she must be in her 40s, although she looked much younger. I decided to take a chance. I offered my phone number, but she declined...
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Erika, 28, and Bruce, 29, met in high school -- where being a year younger was a big deal. It didn't take long, Erika says, for the age difference to melt away. The pranksters: I met Bruce in 1993 on a school bus headed to Independence High. It was the first day of my freshman year. Bruce and his group of friends intimidated me at first, because they were a year older and were very loud and into playing pranks on students during the ride to school.
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Realtor Jane, 59, was waiting for customers at an open house when she spied a newspaper item that changed her life. She recalls how it led her to the theater, where she met Gene, 75: The audition: One Sunday afternoon in 1977, I was reading the paper and noticed the community theater was holding auditions for "Hotel Paradiso" that evening. I'd never heard of the play. But instead of spending another lonely Sunday with the dogs, I headed over to what was then the Little Theatre on Queens Road (now...
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Dessina, 36, was a Chicago transplant when she met Jonathan, 34, in Charlotte in April 2006. She was suspicious of strangers, but loved how Jonathan made her laugh: The stranger: Jonathan approached me at church one Sunday to offer his help with my uncooperative toddler while I was trying to leave after the service. Being a fresh, urban transplant, I was apprehensive about a stranger offering help. I politely declined but continued to keep an eye on him.
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A love of literature brought teachers Doris, 57, and Jim, 56, together. Doris teaches middle school language arts. Jim, who teaches high school English, tells their story: The summer: Our paths crossed at the Bread Loaf School of English in Vermont in 1995. We came there as graduate students for a brief summer interlude sandwiched between our regular lives as seventh-grade language arts teachers. Doris came from Rock Hill, and I came from Keams Canyon, Ariz. We met over lunch in the common dining...
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As Elizabeth, 29, tells it, her romance with Mike,36, began uptown, and featured a locked door, a bag of candy and a movie. A puppy played a supporting role. The keys: Mike and I worked in the same building uptown 7 years ago. There was an instant attraction. The first time I met him I'd locked my keys in my car. He offered to use a slim jim to open the door for me. It took some time, but he finally got it open -- saving me the trouble of paying a locksmith. I repaid him with a bag of Jolly Ranchers...
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Don and Vicki, both 53, met on a blind date in 2000. Both were divorced. They played it safe with a lunch date -- and were married less than a year later. Vicki tells the story: The friend: I had been divorced for about nine years when a friend of mine, with hands on hips, said, "I am going to find you someone!" I was in my late 40s and told her to go ahead and try. She asked her neighbor if he knew anyone nice at work, and he said, "As a matter of fact, I do."
