By Lisa Wilcox
Staff Writer
NEW SWEDEN — With the divorce rate higher than ever, and celebrity couples making it to a major milestone if their marriage lasts longer than a year, one family originally from New Sweden seems to have accomplished the impossible with all siblings remaining married to their original spouses for more than 50 years each.
Contributed Photo
Married a combined total of 282 years, the children of the late Gunnar and Vella Soderberg from New Sweden and their spouses are, from left, Arnie and Marilyn (Soderberg) Bolin, Glenna and Carl Soderberg, Dot (Soderberg) and Phil Stahl, Frances and Douglas Soderberg, and Charles and Jean (Soderberg) Tracy.
Gunnar and Vella Soderberg, both deceased, were married in July of 1930 and had five children, Carl (Sonny), Marilyn, Dorothy, Douglas and Jean. All five siblings have been married a combined total of 282 years and have 15 children among them.
The senior member of the clan, Carl, and his wife, Glenna (Johnston), celebrated anniversary number 62 on Nov. 6; Marilyn and her husband, Arnie Bolin, have been married for 58 years; Dorothy has been married to Phil Stahl for 55 years; Douglas has been married to wife Frances (Roderick) for 54 years; and Jean brings up the rear, having been married to Charles Tracy for 52 years.
None of the Soderberg siblings currently reside in New Sweden; however, Soderberg sibling spouse Arnie Bolin attributes the longevity of the marriages to the many good examples of a supportive community and the value system instilled by a small but loving church.
