If this were just another golden wedding anniversary story, you’d probably see a picture of the happy couple and that would be about it. But there was little that was routine in the way Bill and Peg Harper of Kalaheo
If this were just another golden wedding anniversary story, you’d probably see a picture of the happy couple and that would be about it.
But there was little that was routine in the way Bill and Peg Harper of Kalaheo decided to celebrate their milestone.
Imagine Kaua’i Kookies, a continuous island video presentation, live hula from their daughter-in-law, copies of a Kaua’i magazine, the “Aloha, It’s Kaua’i’s Spirit” cards which have found their way around the world – even a Lihu’e-designed, golden Thai silk dress Peg Harper enjoyed wearing – in a staid, exclusive, members-only club in Melbourne, Australia.
Bill Harper figures Renee Harper’s hula rendition to “Beautiful Kaua’i” was the first ever performed in the century-old exclusive enclave where the Harpers celebrated a special luncheon marking the 50th anniversary of their wedding day.
No, this wasn’t a Kaua’i Visitors Bureau promotion, though it sure sounded like one.
This was the golden anniversary luncheon of the Harpers, who moved to Kalaheo in 1980 and have never considered living anywhere else since.
The wedding anniversary/island promotion was the Harpers’ way of spreading the aloha spirit and information on their current home island to the 75 guests at their special celebration.
The couple wanted to create a Hawaiian atmosphere and succeeded swimmingly, if they do say so themselves, Bill Harper recalled.
Married in Brisbane, Australia on Oct.
31, 1950, Bill Harper, 75, and the former Peg Chalmer, 72, have two children and two grandchildren.
Guests from Hawai’i, the U.S.
mainland, Australia, New Zealand and Spain are still sending their thanks for the celebration and the cookies, which have been shared by co-workers literally around the world, Bill Harper reports.
“I shared my Kaua’i Kookies with the girls at work yesterday,” wrote granddaughter Rebecca Head, who works for the oil and gas company BHP.
“When I opened the box, I found my name tag from the table, aloha card and the quotes card on marriage.
The girls loved both the cookies and the quotes.
I have rallied them all to visit Kaua’i one day.” Lots of people on Kaua’i were involved in helping to bring a bit of Kaua’i to another island, said Bill Harper.
The Kaua’i teamwork necessary to get 72 boxes of Kaua’i Kookies some 5,000 miles to another Pacific island was tremendous, he said.
Besides the Kalaheo Harpers, those from Kaua’i attending the function included son Rohan and wife Renee Harper of Lawa’i, and Tom and Pamela Hazelton, the elder Harpers’ next-door neighbors in Kalaheo.
And the secret to the longevity of the Harpers’ union: “Give and take,” says Bill Harper.
And the fact that Peg Harper has always been infinitely supportive of her husband’s ventures and employment decisions, he concluded.
Staff Writer Paul C. Curtis can be reached at pcurtis@pulitzer.net or 245-3681 (ext.
224)
