Gene and Hilda Hiner celebrate 60th anniversary

Eugene Warner “Gene” Hiner and Hilda W. Barker Hiner of Blythewood recently celebrated their 60th wedding anniversary. They were married Feb. 24, 1957, in Lakeland, Georgia.

Their children are Sharon Lynn Hiner of Columbia; Jack and Patricia Kay Carpenter of Coppell, Texas; and Jeff and Carol Jo Zimmerman.

Their six grandchildren are Laura Anne Carpenter Giles, John William Hiner Carpenter, Emma Lucinda Carpenter, Curt Gareth, Eli Cole Zimmerman and Abel Gray Zimmerman. They have one great-grandchild, Claire Lynn Giles.

To celebrate their anniversary, they took a two-week cruise from Tampa, Florida, with an extended week to visit friends and relatives in the area.

In their own words

Q: How did you meet?

A: We went with mutual friends to a dance. One of the friends had met my future husband, and he seemed interested in meeting me. She introduced us, and we were soon a couple, dating a year before marrying.

Q: What was your favorite part of your wedding day?

A: So many family and friends filled our entire church because I had lived in the same town most of my life.

Q: What do you wish you’d known your first year of marriage?

A: Getting to know my husband’s family.

Q: Tell us about a favorite moment in your marriage.

A: The birth of our first daughter and my husband’s graduation from college.

This story was originally published March 5, 2017 at 12:01 AM with the headline "Gene and Hilda Hiner celebrate 60th anniversary."