Love is in the air – Copthorne residents reveal the secret to a happy marriage

Home news

Feb 22, 2021

A couple at a local care home shared the secret to a happy marriage after marking 70 years together. 

To celebrate Valentine’s Day, the team at Care UK’s Francis Court, on Borers Arms Road, encouraged Alan and Betty Pocock to reminisce about their early days as a couple as they revealed the secret to a happy marriage – which was ‘laughing together and doing mad things’.  

The couple, who met through friends on 9^th February 1948, only a few days before Valentine’s Day, always made sure to have adventures together in their younger years. They particularly enjoyed exploring the countryside on their motorbike. One evening they got lost and as it grew darker, Betty had to hold a torch from her sidecar because there were no streetlights to find their way home.

Betty and Alan married in 1954 in Chislehurst, but soon moved to Crawley New Town to begin their lives together. Betty worked as a hairdresser, while Alan worked at an electrical wiring company, and the couple had two sons, Stuart and Andy.

Betty spent much of her free time enjoying walking in the local area, cooking and gardening, while Alan loved fishing, photography, boules and football. The couple now enjoy spending time together at the home, and enjoying visits with their family in the home’s visiting suite.

Anna Allen, Home Manager at Francis Court, said: “Alan and Betty are truly inseparable, and we could all learn a thing or two from their happy marriage. We thought Valentine’s Day was the perfect opportunity to encourage them to reminisce and share their pearls of wisdom. Love truly is in the air at Francis Court, and many of the residents have also been reminiscing and sharing fond memories of their own wedding days; it was lovely to hear stories from everyone’s younger years.  

“We’d like to say a big thank you to Alan and Betty for their wise words – they certainly gave us food for thought.”

Francis Court has been designed to deliver the very best standards of care and to enable residents to live active and fulfilled lives. The home provides full-time residential, nursing and dementia care, as well as short-term respite care. 

For more information on Francis Court, please call Customer Relations Manager, Beverly Jordan, on 01342 886 567, or email beverly.jordan@careuk.com

For general information please visit careuk.com/francis-court