Rosalyn and Irwin Engelman met in 1953 on a blind date and got married three years later, in November of 1956. They were just teenagers when they met, Rosalyn 15 and Irwin 19, but Rosalyn knew pretty quickly that she was in love.
“I certainly had not dated anyone like the tall, dark, handsome man in a navy blue suit with a briefcase who came to my door,” she says.
After marrying, each built their careers, Rosalyn in art and Irwin in business. They had two daughters and lived in various parts of the East Coast. Today they live at the Apsley, an assisted living facility in New York.
In their 70 years of marriage, the couple has built some rituals. “We always say ‘I love you’ and kiss waking up and going to sleep,” says Rosalyn as an example, adding that, “I think every gesture of kindness and love strengthens the relationship.”
Her biggest piece of advice is to try to understand the other person’s perspective whenever you can. “I never resented his time that he worked hard,” she says as an example, “and I don’t think he resented the fact that I was covered in paint.”
