The story begins in 1969, when Raymond walked down the aisle with Helen Klinger for the first time. They were the ring bearer and flower girl in the wedding of Raymond’s uncle, Ron, and Helen’s oldest sister, Charlotte. Ray was about to turn 6, and Helen was 7.
After the wedding, they remained childhood playmates, meeting up at family picnics and pool parties in the coal region of Pennsylvania where they lived. But by the time they were teenagers, their lives took different directions.
Helen married young and had four children. Raymond joined the Navy, married and had a son.
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“If his wife wouldn’t have passed away and I hadn’t got divorced, we probably wouldn’t have met again,” said Helen, who just turned 53. “I think he was supposed to go through that experience, just like I was supposed to go through my experience to be a better person.”
After dating for four months, they walked down the aisle for the second time on September 14, 2014, to become husband and wife. This time, the roles were reversed: Ray’s uncle carried the rings and Helen’s sister carried the flowers.
