Young love blossomed into a lifetime of happiness for Sunshine West couple Carmen and Alfred D’Alessandro, who celebrate their golden wedding anniversary this week.
On Friday, the couple will have notched up 50 years of wedded bliss and it all started when Alfred came across a 14-year-old Carmen working at a milkbar on Glengala Road.
“Those days were not like today,” Carmen, now 68, said. “Alfred used to come in and every time he came in, I had an apron on and he would untie the strings.”
The pair lost contact for about six months before meeting up again on a walk. They dated in secret for a few months before Carmen’s “strict” parents discovered she had a boyfriend.
After that, every date – whether it was a walk, or a trip to the movies – included a chaperone.
The pair were engaged two years after they started dating and married a year later at the Queen of Heaven Church at Deer Park.
Foregoing a honeymoon, they moved straight into the Sunshine West home they still occupy today, where they raised their three daughters.
Alfred, now 74, said once the mortgage was paid off, the couple took the kids away every Christmas. Today, the D’Alessandros have eight grandchildren.
Carmen said they had always eaten dinner together, a tradition that has followed through to their children and son-in-laws.
Alfred said that if he could have his life over again, he would still spend it with Carmen, while Carmen said it was their differences that made them a perfect match.
“I’m loud; I’ve got a good sense of humour … Alfred has come out of his shell a bit, but he’s quiet and placid, so that’s why I think we match,” Carmen said. “There’s been ups and downs but I’d say there’s been more ups.”
