It’s a hard task to capture the essence of an average lifetime in a column, much less a great one. I was given the task to do just that, not for one, but for two inspiring people who lived their lives hand-in-hand and left them just the same.

Kenneth and Helen Felumlee, a couple in their early 90s, passed away this past weekend within hours of each other after 70 years of marriage. They were of average means and occupation for the entirety of their lives, but they were not an average couple. They were a real life love story in an age of disposable affection.

The couple lived their lives devoted to their family, their faith and their friends — a group that seems to include everyone they met. In meeting part of the Felumlees’ immediate and extended family, it was clear these traits had been passed down through generations.

The family shared some of their most intimate memories of Helen and Kenneth while sitting in the house where the couple had built their lives and raised eight children. They shared stories that made us laugh and those that made us cry, as we celebrated two people who lived to the fullest while also mourning the loss of those beloved individuals.

Some of these stories showed the love the Felumlees had for their community. When the Felumlees moved out of their original house in Old Nashport and built a bigger home down the street, they gave their old house to a widow and her brother who were having trouble providing for themselves. Kenneth told them, “You’ve got a house for the rest of your life,” son Jim Felumlee recalled. The Felumlees never asked for rent and would help with utilities when needed. Helen prepare food and did their laundry weekly until they passed away.

Living by the Felumlees, it was hard for neighbors to be in need. Everything the couple had was community property. “That’s what it’s there for,” Kenneth would say when someone would ask to borrow something.

Other stories showed their sense of humor. When staying at granddaughter Katie Kramer and her husband John’s house in Oklahoma several years ago, the two were sleeping on an air mattress, as the room was equipped with bunk beds and the two didn’t want to sleep apart. In the middle of the night, the air mattress popped, and the two abruptly dropped to the floor.

“You could just hear them laughing in the middle of the night,” Katie recalled. In the morning, the family discovered the popped air mattress still deflated on the floor. Helen and Kenneth had simply relocated to the bottom bunk and were fast asleep, holding each other in the twin bed.

The two remained lively even into their later years, a trait that could sometimes get them into trouble. The room was in stitches as daughter Linda Cody and Jim recounted the time an 85-year-old Kenneth was nearly thrown out of a Licking Valley softball game for teasing the referee.

“What’s wrong ref, can’t ya see?” he repeatedly hollered at the referee. Even as game officials scolded Kenneth, friends throughout the stands would back him up. “You go Kenny,” they would yell in support. When Linda warned him that he was going to get kicked out of the game, he just laughed. “He laughed at everything,” she said.

As the end of their lives approached, Kenneth and Helen stayed strong for each other — she as his caretaker and he as her constant companion. Helen worried that Kenneth would pass first, leaving her alone for the first time in her life. He was conscious of her concern and waited until she was at peace before making that journey himself.

“We wanted them to go together,” Linda said. “And they did.”

Hearing about a devotion so deep it transcends death is a powerful experience, one that has given me clarity about the fairytale ending we all strive for. Relationships of all kinds only develop when you put the love and care into them that they deserve.

The Felumlees cared for each other and worked every day to grow their bond because they knew the truth — you have to fight for your happily ever after.

Anna Rumer is a reporter for the Times Recorder. Follow her at @AnnaRumerZTR

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