Couple gets photo shoot arranged by granddaughter who is 'obsessed' with their love story
“He kept telling me how much he loved her," said their photographer.
— -- They say true love stands the test of time, and for Ollie and Donald King, that is certainly the case. They’re celebrating their 68th anniversary this September.
“He kept telling me how much he loved her and how God blessed them with 68 years,” photographer Paige Franklin told ABC News. “He told me in all their 68 years together they’ve never spent one full day or night apart. That was so touching to me. I kept thinking, 'That is the sweetest thing I’ve ever heard.'”
The couple’s granddaughter, Ashley Owen, arranged for the lovebirds to have a photo shoot on their farm in Crab Orchard, Kentucky, as a keepsake to always remember how much they cherish each other.
“I’m obsessed with them and I think they’re super adorable, even though I’m biased,” Owen, 24, said with a laugh. “I really did it just for myself because I’m obsessed with them and I thought it would be great.”
It took some convincing to get them to agree to it, however.
“They’re super humble and don’t like to be photographed a lot. They don’t want to show off at all,” said Owen.
Her grandfather, Donald King, 87, was a pastor for 47 years.
“God has always been their No. 1 goal and focus in everything,” she said. “It’s important to him that they be humble and be good people and take care of each other.”
Her grandmother, Ollie King, 83, was a quiltmaker for 30 years.
“She made her first quilt when she was 50. I think it was the one we used in the pictures,” said Owen. “She used to sell them and she kept this one so it means something to her.”
The two both still tend to their roughly 100-acre farm every day, a location Franklin was thrilled to use as the backdrop to celebrate their love for each other.
“I thought, ‘Why go anywhere else? I’ll just go there. It’s more personal,'” said Franklin. “They’re so playful and happy and silly with each other. I want to adopt them as my grandparents.”
The photos have been shared nearly 6,000 times since Franklin posted them to her Facebook, which surprises the Kings beyond belief.
“They were just taking the photos for me,” said Owen. “They don’t really believe how big all this has gotten. They’re not seeking attention or fame.”
Owen said her grandparents have “always been there” for their entire family, and she’s thrilled to have these sentimental photos to print and share as memories with her relatives.
“It means the world to me because they mean the world to me,” she said. “They’ve been there for each other and they’ve been there for us. They make jokes together and pretty much do everything together and they’ll do pretty much anything for everybody.”