Ned Howell says both his family and the family of his wife, Wilma, warned them they were making a mistake when they got married on April 26, 1942.

Wilma was only 15 and he was just a year older.

“They said it wouldn’t last six months because we were so young,” Howell said with a twinkle in his brown eyes. “We are still proving them wrong.”

Friday, the Howells were honored with a surprise 67th wedding anniversary party at Shear Class, where Mrs. Howell gets her hair done once a week. The party was thrown by Shear Class employees Jean Capps, Kathy Stone and Patti Rice, along with all the customers who usually come in on Friday.

Howell said he and his wife, the former Wilma Fowler, met at Kelly-Pinckney School. He said at first, his wife and his brother, Charles, were sweet on each other. Howell said he would go up on the stage in the auditorium and clown around to get her to notice him.

“I asked her for a date and she said yes,” he said.

The women at the shop asked Mrs. Howell if her husband was handsome.

“That little boy?” she said, thinking back. “Yes.”

Howell had to walk six miles to see the green-eyed girl and six miles back home, but he said he never minded that.

They were married at the home of the Rev. J.Q. Wallace, who was a Presbyterian minister.

“I had to tell a story to get the license,” Howell said. “I had to say I was 21.”

The Howells have two sons, Stanley Howell of Pea Ridge and David Howell of Warner Robbins, Ga.; five grandchildren and six great-grandchildren.

Howell is retired after a 50-year career in textiles. The family moved from Union County in 1956 when Howell was transferred to Kingstree. They also lived in Georgia before returning to Union in 2005. They are members of Mt. Joy Baptist Church.

For other couples seeking advice on how to have a happy marriage, Howell said this: “Love one another,” he said. “We believed in seeking God’s will.”

A long marriage seems to be a Howell family trait — Howell’s brother and sister-in-law, William and Edith Howell, have been married more than 70 years.

The employees at Shear Class said they fell in love with the Howells when Ned began bringing his wife for her weekly visit to the beauty shop. Howell brings all three of the women a ham biscuit every Friday.

“They are the sweetest couple in the world,” Mrs. Rice said. “We love them with all our hearts. We would miss them if they didn’t come on Friday mornings.”

Mrs. Capps said the Howells are the adopted grandparents of the shop staff.

“They are a wonderful, loving couple,” she said. “We fell in love with them the minute we met them.”

Every Friday, when Mrs. Capps finishes with Mrs. Howell’s hair, her husband always gives a whoop of approval to make her laugh.

“He shows so much love,” Mrs. Capps said. “He takes such good care of her.”

Mrs. Stone also said the Howells are a loving couple.

“It just humbles you to know that people can still love each other after 67 years,” she said. “They are a blessing to us.”

Howell sums up his feelings for his wife simply.

“She’s the love of my life,” he said.