Doreen and Harold Lesage have reached an important milestone in their marriage.

Earlier this month, the Garden River, Ontario couple celebrated their 70th wedding anniversary with 200 friends and family members at a “wonderful” party on Aug. 10 in Delta, Sault Ste. Marie news station SooToday reported.

“We have the most wonderful family and everyone works so hard,” said Doreen.

The couple grew up in Garden River and their families were friends before they started dating. “We knew early on that there was a connection,” Doreen recalls.

“He would ask me if I would go to the movies or shows in town with him. When we were dating for a few years, we passed by Whalen’s Jewelers in Sault and he asked me if he could buy me a ring. It was like a friendship ring.”

They married on August 10, 1954. Five years after their wedding, they built a house together and have lived there ever since.

And what is the secret of their decades-long marriage? “Understanding each other,” said Doreen. “There is no reason to argue. Yesterday is over, it will never happen again. Don’t dwell on the past, but look for better things in the future.”

She also said it was important to have a sense of humor. She and Harold had an Alexa installed in their home and he talked to the virtual assistant. She joked that it made her jealous.

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“All he has to do is say, ‘Alexa, I want to hear Waylon Jennings. Alexa, I want to hear Merle Haggard,'” Doreen said. “I called my son and said, ‘I’ve never been jealous of your father all these years, and now all I hear is ‘Alexa, Alexa.’ She listens to him and plays all his music. What are you trying to accomplish? Get us divorced?'”

Harold attributed the success to his family, which includes five children, 19 grandchildren and 19 great-grandchildren. “What more could you ask for?” he said.

“No millionaire can say that. I don’t have a million, but I am infinitely grateful to each and every one of them. The children were perfect. They love each other, they understand each other and they are building their own houses and that makes me proud of them.”

Doreen and Harold, who live nearby, also meet for breakfast every Saturday morning, which has been a family tradition for 10 years.