By ROBIN SHANNON

L’Observateur

LAPLACE – There are those who will say absence makes the heart grow fonder, but that’s not the case for O.J. and Hazel Ory — they have been together for more than 70 years!

“It is a strong bond that’s hard to break,” Hazel Ory said of her connection to her husband. “There are few who have the energy or the patience to make it this long.”

O.J., 93, grew up among the lumberyards and timber industry of Garyville, while Hazel, 92, was raised in LaPlace, which began to develop as refineries moved to the area. The two were high school sweethearts at Leon Godchaux High School in Reserve.

“We always had many common friends, so we ran in the same circles,” O.J. Ory said. “Our families had known each other, and we both had many common ties.”

After high school, the pair went their separate ways for college. Hazel went to University of Southwestern Louisiana (now University of Louisiana-Lafayette), while O.J. studied dentistry at Loyola University in New Orleans. Although they were miles apart, they remained friends and visited each other from time to time. O.J. graduated from Loyola in 1939, and he and Hazel married the following year.

“Dec. 30, 1940, to be exact,” Hazel Ory said. “We were married in St. Peter Church in Reserve. It was the old church, the one destroyed by Hurricane Betsy. It was a beautiful church.”

Following their marriage, O.J. enlisted in the Army, where he served four and a half years in the dental detail during World War II. He and Hazel lived on the base at Fort Bragg, N.C.

After his time served in the Army, O.J. and his wife returned home and took up residence in LaPlace, not far from the home where Hazel grew up.

“We actually live right next door to the house I was raised in,” she said. “We bought the land and the small house that was on it and expanded the house to what it is today.”

Once the couple settled back at home, O.J. joined his father’s LaPlace dental practice while Hazel went into teaching. She taught second grade for several years at John L. Ory Magnet School in LaPlace.

“The area has gone through an immense amount of changes since then,” O.J. Ory said. “I was able to see Garyville grow from the small lumber community it started as and also watched Reserve blossom into a booming sugar town. It’s certainly not the same as it was.”

The Orys said they don’t leave the LaPlace area much unless someone picks them up and takes them places. They stay active, however, and often spend time with their three children – O.J. Ory III, Robert D. Ory Jr. and Linda Joint – and 17 grandchildren.

“The grandchildren keep us busy,” O.J. Ory said.

The couple offered little advice for a long relationship like theirs other than that patience is the key to longevity and happiness.

“There are many who throw in the towel much too soon,” Hazel Ory said. “Don’t do it. Just let the good Lord lead you, let it flow and you will find peace. Nothing is too big that can’t be worked out.”

O.J. Ory added that a good sense of humor is also a good tool for a happy relationship.

“Laugh, be happy and always get the last word – ‘yes ma’am!’” O.J. said with a laugh.