We are both veterans and were married on Veteran’s Day, 11-11-11. To make love last, you have to appreciate everything about that person and focus on all the good, not the negatives. Never yell!

Kindness breeds kindness and meanness doesn’t breed love! We laugh together, stay up late talking to each other, have fun together, and enjoy every day.

— Melissa Flores, Fairborn

I think it’s important to show each other respect and help each other in big or small ways — cook, clean, homework, etc. Get a sitter and go out, no matter what you do, just be together. Never talk down to your spouse, be open with what’s on your mind. Compliment each other and remember why you love that person.

— Ted and Mary Loose, Springboro

We both try hard to bite our tongues a lot. When something bothers you about your spouse — like not replacing the toilet paper, or leaving a wet towel on the floor, just do it yourself and don’t nag.

Try and do kind things for each other just to make one another happy and more comfortable. Never keep score.

— Patti Elliott, Troy

It’s sounds corny, but our advice is to be best friends, have a sense of humor and have common interests. We love the theater, opera, the movies, lectures. We’re having more fun than ever.

— Sondra and Fred Ross, Middletown

As with many couples married this long, we have had our ups and downs. We both realize that love is not stagnant. It can grow or diminish after many years. Our love for each other has grown more and more over the years.

Our secret is to start each day with an “I love you,” never go to bed angry and understand each other’s problems.

— Frank Pospisil, Kettering

Be honest, serve each other, and learn from your differences.

— Michael and Curry Winters, Middletown

Respect, honesty, trust, equality, communication and listening. We go on dates at least twice a week. We share equally in just about everything. Never go to sleep mad at each other, always be the first to apologize regardless, and the biggest: watch TV in separate rooms so that you both have control of the remote!

— Pete McGuire, Miamisburg

It’s easy to be self-centered, but if you need and want a relationship, it’s got to be a matter of mutual consideration. Treat someone else like you want to be treated. Take care of each other.

Quite simply, be patient and work at it. It’s easy to say ‘I don’t want to do this anymore’ in any relationship. It may sound old-fashioned, but communication and kindness are as important today as they’ve ever been.

— Barbara and Allan Barth, Springfield

We strive to love each other unconditionally as described in 1 Corinthians, Chapter 13 in the Bible. There is nothing worth fighting about in light of eternity. We pray together daily.

Tom voluntarily wears a button every day that says “I ‘heart’ my wife.” He remembers that Kay is not bossy, she just has better ideas. Tom tells Kay every day that she’s beautiful.

Kay made a small quilt that hangs in our bedroom that says ‘I love you forever, for always and no matter what’ as a reminder of our love for each other.

— Tom and Kay Gentry, Beavercreek Twp.

We’ve been married for 42 years and you’ve got to support each other through good and bad. I think young people give up too easily. They watch soap operas on television and think that’s how marriage is going to be. You’ve got to put effort into your marriage.

— Sherry Mercer, Springfield

We met on July 2nd and were married three dates, one kiss, and 22 days later. It will be 40 years this July. God is our first priority in life, our second priority is our spouse.

We do fun things together: church, zip-lining, parasailing and traveling. We have a budget and live within it. We love each other more than ever.

— The Rev. Dr. Donald and Thelma Avore, Greenville

I believe that after experiencing the loss of our spouses, we realize that life can be shorter than we expect, thus we focus on quality time. We continue to enjoy physical contact, often hugging and kissing for no particular reason other than enjoying each other’s touch.

 When I get home from work, I am most often met at the door with a glass of wine. He has dinner cooking and has done the laundry so we can enjoy each other the rest of the evening.

We have fun in whatever we do, whether it just be shopping, riding our bikes, traveling or completing a new home.

We often say that we feel like teenagers again. We never realized that we would find love again when our spouses died.

— Carolyn Karolyi and John Smith, Spring Valley

We have had our ups and downs: There were times when we would be just scraping by and times when we could afford a vacation with the kids to Disney World. Now my wife is fighting leukemia and I am overcoming myoclonus.

You have to be true to each other, talk to each other, do not keep secrets from each other, let each other know how you feel, and most of all, tell each other, your children and grandchildren that you love them.

— Jerrold and Jane Dodd, Tipp City