Love blossoms in pastor's kitchen

Finding guidance in life and the comfort of the Lord is has made 90-year-old Kaitaia man Ivan Grbich a faithful churchgoer, but unlike most he scored a real bonus when it also led him to his new wife, 79-year-old Annatjie (Anna) Christina.

Both had been married before, and neither was looking for a new spouse. Ivan married his first wife, mother to his four children, in 1944, while Anna and her first husband were together for 49 years before he passed away. Both were steadfastly enjoying being single.

"One disaster in my life was enough. I was never going to get married again," Ivan said, while Anna's motto was once is enough.

"I used to tell my children that if I was ever to marry again, the man would have to play the steel guitar, be a true believer in the Bible and sing beautifully," she said.

"I thought I had put my standards so high nobody could reach them. Who would've thought I would meet a man that fitted all those things in New Zealand?"

Ivan was happily living with his son and daughter-in-law at Herekino, enjoying his gardening and attending the Kaitaia Baptist Church, where he met Pastor Louis du Plessis and his wife Joey. It was when he visited the couple one day late last year that he also met Joey's mother, Anna, who was holidaying from South Africa. And they got carried away with their "chat."

"Anna was so different to most ladies I'd met. Our likes and dislikes were almost identical. This meeting turned my determination to remain single forever upside down," he said.

The connection grew over the next few weeks, and with Anna's return home looming, Ivan knew he had to act fast.

"I was staying at the du Plessis household one night and I couldn't sleep. I was having this vision where all I could see was a figure at the end of a tunnel with a voice telling me that she was the woman for me. That figure revealed itself as Anna. I just knew what I had to do," he said.

Next morning Ivan walked into the kitchen, where Anna was standing, peeling potatoes, and asked her if she would marry him. He fully expected to be declined, and when she accepted, he almost fell over.

The couple announced their engagement at Ivan's 90th birthday celebrations in February and were married in March, where it all began, the Kaitaia Baptist Church, with son-in-law Louis officiating. And they have been overwhelmed with the outpouring of love and positivity they have received.

"We had planned on having a small ceremony, but once word got out, we had over 200 people at the church," Ivan said.

"It was absolutely packed. I couldn't believe it. It's made me realise yet again what a wonderful community we have up here."

If he was nervous it was only in anticipation of the reaction from his son- and daughter-in-law, but he need not have worried. Neither were surprised, saying they had already had separate visions of what was happening.

Meanwhile Anna returned to South Africa in April, while Ivan travelled to Noumea to attend a 70th commemoration of New Zealand's part in the war in the Pacific (he was a radio operator), where he took the opportunity to inspire an 89-year-old fellow veteran to follow his example.

"Perhaps I've started a fashion," he said.

The couple then celebrated a second wedding, South African style, with Anna's family and friends, in her home city of Rustenburg.

"It was a big celebration, amazing," he added.

"What a beautiful country. Quite different from here."

Both agree that no-one is too old to find love, and are happy that their story is encouraging and pleasing to others.

"Everybody we meet and share our story with is full of joy and excited about it," Anna said.

"They all want to share our story with others."

"I might be 90, but when I see a beautiful flower I still appreciate its beauty, the same as I did when I was 10 years old," Ivan added.

Both also agree that they have taken a new lease on life, and have much to learn about each other's cultures, Anna confessing that she had not even heard of the Dalmatian culture before she met her future husband.