A LOVE STORY

Posted on Sat, Mar. 06, 2010 10:15 PM

LOVE STORY
After the smoke cleared, they made a life together
By DEBORAH SHOUSE
Special to The Star
Ed and Karen Rowe were set up by a mutual friend. They were both reluctant to go on a blind date, but they hit it off right away.

Ed Rowe, 22, had a fear of blind dates. So he was not enthusiastic when his friend Bonnie insisted he meet her friend Karen. Only after a lot of prodding did he agree.

It was 1962, and Karen Snyder, 20, was attending the University of Kansas nursing school in Kansas City, Kan. Bonnie praised Ed, but Karen initially was not interested. She had seen him once, some months ago. She thought he was handsome, but he smoked.

“I didn’t like the smoking,” Karen says. “But Bonnie was so sweet, and I appreciated her thoughtfulness. There weren’t many men in nursing school, so I finally decided to meet Ed.”

They met in the nurses’ residence hall at KU hospital.

“She was a looker,” Ed says. “I saw her and said, ‘I think we’re going to hit it off.’ ”

Karen thought so, too. They went to the Country Club Plaza to see the movie “Pink Panther.” Afterward, they went out to eat.

“The more we found out about each other, the more connected we felt,” Ed says.

On their second date, Karen told Ed, “If you don’t quit smoking, I’m not going out with you.”

Ed quit cold turkey.

“That was an important step in our relationship,” Karen says.

Within six months, they were talking about a wedding. They picked out an engagement ring, and Ed began to make payments. Before a trip to St. Louis to visit Ed’s brother, Ed secretly picked up the ring. That weekend, after a wonderful evening in Gaslight Square, Ed drove Karen down to the riverside.

“I popped out the ring and popped the question,” he says.

Karen said a delighted “Yes.”

Back home, they talked to Karen’s sister about their wedding plans. She was also engaged, and Karen and Ed suggested a double wedding. The two couples were married Sept. 5, 1965, in Kansas City, Kan.

Today, Karen and Ed live in Olathe. Karen is a retired school nurse, and Ed is retired from insurance. They have three children and six grandchildren. They enjoy doing church work, traveling to see family and eating out. Karen likes quilting and sewing; Ed enjoys golfing and reading. They feel that really listening to each other is a key to their deep relationship.

“Ed is kind and gentle, and he has a great sense of humor,” Karen says. “I love to be with him. We have a wonderful partnership.”

“Karen is loving and caring,” Ed says. “She’s heard all my jokes a hundred times, but she laughs anyway. That is true love.”

Deborah Shouse is a freelance writer. Suggest a Love Story couple by writing to lovestory@kcstar.com.
Posted on Sat, Mar. 06, 2010 10:15 PM