50th Wedding Anniversary

I had the honor and privilege of attending Silas and Margaret Ncozana’s  50^th Wedding anniversary weekend of festivities recently. This was truly a remarkable event. Silas and Margaret are two of the most kind hearted people I have ever had the privilege of knowing and it was such a joy to be able to celebrate their marriage. 

The festivities began on Saturday April 14, at 9:00 a.m. at St. Michaels and All Angels Church in Blantyre. As I walked up to the church with my Dad and Nana I knew that we were all in for a huge celebration. Gathered in front of the church were well wishers from all over Malawi, all over Africa, and all over the world. It has been a long time since I have seen so many Americans gathered in one place. Representatives from Pittsburgh, North Carolina, Nebraska, South Africa, Zambia, and so many more places came to celebrate the love of these special people. All the visitors were dressed in the proper attire as well. The invitation said to wear White or Tan with a “sprinkle of gold” in honor of the golden anniversary. The effect of this dress code was beautiful; everyone looked great dressed and ready for the events.

The ceremony at the church was for the couple to renew the marriage vowels they had pledged to one another 50 years ago. This was beautiful to witness. What was even more special was how they incorporated their family into the event. All their grandchildren that were able to make it served as the bridal party. They were all dressed in matching outfits and led the way down the aisle as their proud grandparents entered the church arm in arm. It was so wonderful to see these loving grandparents that are so proud of all their grandchildren stand as a beautiful example of what a loving and strong marriage can produce. As the ceremony continued, vows were renewed and tribal dancing occurred. It was a wedding like I had never been to. The joy that filled the room truly was intoxicating. You would be hard pressed to find someone in that church that wasn’t enjoying every second of this remarkable event.

Once the church service was over the couple made their way outside and were greeted by all those who had come to celebrate them before they got into Silas’s 1958 Mercedes Benz to drive off toward the reception. The reception was a beautiful event that was held at a local garden with two giant tents set up. The bridal party entered by dancing their way to the small stage where the happy couple sat and greeted their guests there to celebrate their marriage. The reception continued until late in the afternoon; then, most of the international guests headed to Kutchire Lodge to spend the night before the festivities were to continue the next morning.

Sunday morning, after having a wonderful breakfast at Kutchire we all headed about an hour away to Silas’s Church about 20 minutes off the tarmac road called Chuluchosema CCAP. Silas has been serving this rural church for many years now and they did a fantastic job during this celebration for their beloved Pastor. Silas and Margaret arrived to the celebration in style once again, this time it wasn’t in an old Benz, it was on an Ox pulled cart with seats in it surrounded by the entire church singing and cheering for them. They looked like royalty coming into the church smiling and waving to the crowds. Their entrance was certainly worth the price of admission. The festivities continued on with multiple sermons, one by an Azungu Abusa in a gold vest who did a great job reminding everyone there what a great example Silas and Margaret’s marriage and family can be to us. There was more singing and dancing and smiles all around. This rural church has about 1000 members and I think that every single one of them was at church for this event. It was truly remarkable. After the service the women of the church prepared food for all those in attendance.

This event was so special for so many reasons. I have personally known Silas and Margaret for as long as I can remember and they have become loving grandparents my family’s life. A great example of this is in October of this year Silas was in Pittsburgh, while I was here in Malawi, and he was staying with my parents. During that time my sister brought her boyfriend, Tim, over to the house for dinner one evening. As Tim entered the house my Dad without missing a beat introduced Tim to Silas saying, this is Heather’s Grandfather. Having such close relationship with the Ncozanas for all these years made being at this event celebrating them even more special.  Silas and Margaret were extremely instrumental in forming the partnership between Pittsburgh Presbytery and Blantyre Synod. The more I think about it, the more I realize it is almost entirely Silas’s fault that the Merry Family ended up coming to Malawi for a year, and I will be forever grateful to him for that. 

It is not very common at all here in Malawi to be married for 50 years. With life expectancies nowhere near as high as they are in the United States, being married for 50 years is truly an accomplishment and such a blessing. This event also gave me many great ideas for my parents’ 50^th wedding anniversary coming up in 10 years; Mom and Dad you will look great in an Ox cart! 😊 Congratulations to Silas and Margaret on 50 years of Marriage, and thank you for reminding us all what a beautiful and powerful thing love is. Love can truly change the world; the Ncozanas are living proof of that.