By Paige Lambert

She was a shy 7-year-old. He was a flirtatious 12-year-old. Little did these young people know they would settle down, have kids and share a life full of love together.

Darlene and Brent Freitag, of Buda, will celebrate their 50th anniversary July 25. Even though they married at a young age, she 16 and he 20, Darlene said it wasn’t love at first sight. 

“He would flirt and I thought ‘I’ve got to stay away from him, he’s bad,” she said.

They first met when Darlene would tag along on her older sister’s dates. Her sister was dating Brent’s older brother.

“I knew I loved her from when I was young,” Brent said. “She had those beautiful brown eyes and long ponytail.”

Once Darlene moved in with her sister and now brother-in-law, she would go to Brent’s football games in Dripping Springs. They would often double date with their siblings, never taking anything very seriously.

Brent joined the U.S. Marines and was deployed to Iceland. He and Darlene began writing as friends and soon decided to get married.

“In these letters we decided we really loved each other and had for a long time,” Darlene said. “I always knew he would take care of me and protect me.”

Brent took a 30-day leave from Iceland, surprising Darlene while she was detailing her car.

After Darlene had a car accident, Brent rushed back and married Darlene in Bee Cave.

Their first year of marriage was a bumpy one. For example, in the rush to get back to his North Carolina base, their car’s engine broke down twice. And the only housing they could afford was half a garage behind a hotel; a partition separated their area from an elderly man.

“We truly loved and depended on each other,” Brent said. Then he quipped, “And I have these gorgeous blue eyes and she was a sucker for those things.”

Darlene said the worst times were when they were separated by a deployment or some emergency. 

While they were stationed at Camp Pendleton, Darlene’s grandmother passed. Since it was around Thanksgiving, she stayed in Austin while Brent remained on the base. 

“It was miserable. I thought ‘I can’t stay here while he is there by himself,” Darlene said. 

She hopped on the quickest bus and surprised him. They bought the biggest chicken they could find and made Thanksgiving dinner for two.

“It was great because I just couldn’t imagine not being together, of him being by himself,” she said. 

Darlene said people thought their marriage wouldn’t last. Not only were they young, but she was Catholic while he was from an Assembly of God background.

“I told Brent ‘No matter what, I’ll be damned to let them be right, she said. “‘We are going to stay together.’”

She said they counter-balanced each other, she the more serious and he carefree.

“To counter-balance each other was very good,” Darlene said. “But what helped was we both very much believed in God.”

Brent was discharged from the military in 1967 and the couple settled down in Austin. Over the next three decades they raised a family, moved to Buda and ran a business together for six years.

Sandra Graziano, their daughter, said they have become the source of marital advice to many couples, even saving some marriages.

Some common advice they give?

“Don’t talk ill of your spouse to others, solve your problems face to face and still go on dates,” Darlene said.

“He’ll ask her out and she’ll get all giddy,” Graziano said. “They have never let their romance fade away.”

Even during hard times, she said they never talked of divorce.

“It takes a lot of guts sometimes to sit face to face and talk,” Brent said. “If you do that, all things will correct [themselves].”

Now, after two kids, two grandchildren and countless stories, they have to deal with another struggle. 

Brent is dealing with major health issues, which has taken a toll, Darlene said.

Even with all the years together and Brent’s illness, Brent said he still sees that young girl with a ponytail.

“She is still a beautiful girl,” Brent said. “She gets better with age.”

“When I see Brent, I know he is old and I know he has illnesses,” Darlene said. “But in my heart he is still the Marine I married. I don’t think that will ever change.”