An Illinois couple created some buzz around one of the great feel-good love stories that you’ll read for a long time. Jim and Iona Tack made news on their local news channel, WQAD8, as the couple celebrated their 75th wedding anniversary. In a day and time where divorce seems all too common, Jim and Iona stuck it out to put together one of the most impressive feats of love and commitment imaginable.
The couple wed in 1948 and immediately began construction on their dream home. Without power tools or a large team of construction workers, the pair worked together to build what would one day be the place where they celebrated 75 years happily married to one another. “We didn’t have any tools,” recounted Jim Tack. “We only had two handsaws and built our home. Throughout countless renovations, it’s still standing, and I couldn’t have done it without my wife, Iona.”
Watch them here:
Their children, Mary and James, were present for the festivities. For Mary, the spectacle of this occasion was not lost on her. “Just having them here means the world to us. Just having your parents at 93 and 95, that’s unbelievable. I couldn’t imagine what my life would be without them.”
According to James, his parent has been able to stay in that same home even with their advanced age. Something that is no doubt due in part to his and his sister’s ability to check in on Mom and Dad. “This home has changed a lot,” he said. “To be able to keep our parents here, check in on them and make sure everything is okay, that’s the world to us. We wouldn’t want it any different.”
Jim offered some brief advice for anyone hoping to have such a long-lasting relationship with their spouse, along with a quick profession of love for his sweetheart Iona. “To achieve this, you have to work as a team. I love my wife, she’s the best, and I wouldn’t change anything.”
Sometimes the constant negativity of the news cycle can make it far too easy to forget that love stories like this happen all around us. You don’t need to know the finances that Jim and Iona possess to know that they have lived a rich life full of fulfillment and joy.
The couple hails from a small town called Savanna, Illinois. As of the 2020 census, the town only had 2,783 residents, and that number was a decrease of roughly 100 residents since 2010. Savanna is located along the shore of the Mississippi River. The farm town is home to the Savanna Military Depot, which employed as many as 2,000 citizens up until its closure in 1995, causing a mass exodus from the town.
As for Jim and Iona, they have no plans to leave the city of Savanna. For them, that home is where their journey began, and they won’t be leaving it on their own will.
Featured image credit: screengrab from the embedded video
"*" indicates required fields