Award celebrating long-lasting love looking for Rotorua nominees

The 2019 Wedding Industry Awards (NZ). Photo / Charlotte Pinfold Photography

Awards celebrating every aspect of New Zealand's wedding industry are encouraging couples who shared 50 years or more of married life together to enter a special award.

The 'Love & Longevity' category of Wedding Industry Awards (NZ) is at the heart of what the awards are about – love.

In this category, the only qualifying criteria is a nominated couple need to have celebrated a minimum of their Golden Wedding Anniversary (50 years of married life).

In previous years, couples have been nominated by their children, grandchildren, family or friends. A qualifying couple might also elect to self-nominate.

Awards organiser Peter Duncan says the mission of the Wedding Industry Awards (NZ) is to celebrate the unique nature of the wedding niche in New Zealand.

"Our belief as organisers is to not only celebrate the people that make the magic happen and create those special milestones for couples, we can also acknowledge the relationship and milestone itself."

He says the first couple to win the award in 2014, John and Maisie Bond, were married in a church in London during World War II and when they stepped out of the church were showered with empty cartridges.

"For us, as the people receiving these entries, it's an incredibly special process going through them because we learn so much about the couple and what was happening historically during the time they were married."

Last year's winners were Rotorua couple Ralph and Coyla Buckley.

They were married on April 19, 1969. They met because they both worked for the Wairarapa Dairy Company in Featherston - Ralph was a butter maker and Coyla worked in the office.

Rotorua couple Ralph and Coyla Buckley were the recipients of the Love and Longevity Award for 2019. Photo / Supplied

Peter says at the gala event, for the most part, there is not a dry eye in the house and there is a standing ovation as the 'Love & Longevity' winners are announced.

"We have videos sharing a bit of their love story. It's quite an amazing thing to see."

He says seeing couples that are still so genuinely in love with each other is heart-warming, encouraging and inspiring.

- Entries close July 26 at 9pm NZ time. There is no fee to nominate/enter a couple into this category. However, if a couple is a finalist they will be required to attend the Awards Gala scheduled for August 21, hosted at Rotorua's Energy Event Centre. Finalist couples will be advised on August 2. For more information go to weddingindustryawards.nz