Love at first sight, 70 years ago — thanks to Modesto Bee personal ad
From time to time, well-meaning readers try to persuade The Modesto Bee to cover this or that social event, like a 100th birthday party, an Eagle scout court of honor or a 50th wedding anniversary. In the old days we had the space and resources for non-news items, but times have changed and these days you hardly ever see such in pages more devoted to local news and opinion. We’re serious, hardened journalists, you know.
So I was surprised at my inability to resist Evelyn Schoonover’s tale of true love. Danged if she didn’t suck me in by playing to my ego, or my decades-long belief that the local newspaper sometimes makes a difference in peoples’ lives.
It seems that Evelyn was a teenager here in her native Modesto in 1950 when she met her future husband, Ed Schoonover of Riverbank, at the Uptown Ballroom in downtown Modesto. It was pretty much love at first sight, she says; they dated two years and were married 70 years ago, on July 19, 1952.
But they would not have met if she had not agreed, on a whim, to wander into a western dance in that ballroom with a new acquaintance. The night was still young after Evelyn and her sort-of friend came out of a showing of “Father of the Bride” starring Spencer Tracy and Elizabeth Taylor.
The only reason Evelyn saw that movie was that the acquaintance, a lonely woman, had hired Evelyn two days before to be her friend. The woman’s husband was out of state on an extended business trip buying wood for his Modesto lumber business.
And the two young women would not have come together if Evelyn had not seen and responded to the lonely woman’s classified help-wanted ad for a temporary companion — in our newspaper.
“I give credit to The Modesto Bee,” concluded Evelyn, who is 90; Ed’s 93rd birthday is this week, too, on July 22. Evelyn added, “It would be nice to let our friends know we’re still alive and kicking.”
Well there you go. The newspaper did something good.
Happy 70th anniversary, Evelyn and Ed.
This story was originally published July 19, 2022 at 4:00 AM.
