After graduating high school in a small Northeastern town, Ellie worked at the local dry cleaners with her mom to help support their large family.  Each day Don and his buddies walked past the cleaners and headed to the nearby coffee shop.  They laughed and joked as they walked past, enjoyed the freedom of summer. 

 Whenever the boys passed by, Ellie would stop pressing clothes and watch Don walk by the large picture window.  She didn’t know his name, or where he was from, but she was certain he was the one. 

 “That’s the one I’m going to marry,” she blurted out one day.  Her mom and the other workers giggled and suggested she meet him before making life long plans. 

 One afternoon Ellie headed to the coffee shop to pick up lunch for the workers. As she waited at the counter, Don walked over to her and introduced himself. 

 “Hi, I’m Donnie,” he said, and her heart swooned.  She held herself together as he asked her out on a date.  She accepted, but then her mind raced to figure out a way to hide this from her father.  He would not allow her to date. 

 Ellie went to her grandmother’s house the night of the date.  He picked her up and they enjoyed each other enough to meet over and over again. 

 Months later, the two got married, started a family and he joined the Army.  They traveled and lived all over the world, met life long friends and enjoyed each other’s company.  Two retirements, four kids, eight grandkids, and four great grandkids later, they are still living their happily ever after.  48 years later.

 That is still my favorite love story.