84- and 94-year-old marry at St. Mary’s Church

Dylan Pichnarcik

August 2, 2026 by Dylan Pichnarcik

LYNN — Love proved it’s never too late when a 94-year-old groom and his 84-year-old bride celebrated their marriage with a Catholic wedding ceremony, showing that romance can flourish at any age.

Marie Smith and James Smith officially tied the knot at St. Mary’s Church on Saturday. Marie is a lifelong Lynner, and James has lived in the city for decades.

Although the two are technically newlyweds, they know a thing or two about what marriage is like between them, having actually been married for 42 years.

Marie said she got the idea to have a Catholic wedding ceremony after watching an EWTN TV program in which a priest explained that Catholics who marry outside of the church may not have their marriage recognized by the Catholic Church. The two were previously married in a protestant church, James’ faith.

Although she always felt they were truly married, she wanted to have their marriage fully recognized by the Catholic Church.

Her parish priest, Rev. Daniel A. Zinger, worked with the bishop to complete the necessary process, after which they celebrated the Catholic wedding ceremony.

Marie said Zinger was wonderful to her and her husband: “The priest listened to my story, and he said, ‘OK, well, let me take care of this.’”

She added, “He went out of his way to make sure things were done for us, and it makes me happy.”

Now, being officially married in a Catholic Church, Marie said, “I feel very good about it.”

She added, “It makes me happy. I really do feel a little different.”

Marie said the secret to a happy marriage is respect.

“Respect is really very important — to respect each other. Because that one word means that you care about that person, and you’re not going to do something to upset them deliberately,” she said, highlighting that every marriage does have ups and downs regardless.

Marie and James’ love story began many years ago at a dance. She mistook James for an old high school friend.

“I tapped him on the shoulder, and I said, ‘Hi, remember me?’ and he said, ‘No,’” Marie said.

After realizing James was not the person she thought he was, the two continued talking and eventually danced the night away. However, they didn’t begin dating for a short while.

“I wouldn’t give him my phone number, but after a month, I finally did, and we started dating,” she said.

A year later, the two were married.

James and Marie have 19 children. James has 14; Marie has five.

She added that James’ children were mostly grown when they married, while her five children were still young and living at home. She also said they have many grandchildren and great-grandchildren throughout the country.