NAPLES, Fla. — A Florida couple celebrated their 73rd anniversary Sunday, but because of the coronavirus pandemic, it was probably the most unusual party they have ever had.
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Joe Tenaglio and his wife, Yolanda, watched from the portico of the assisted living facility where they live as 20 cars and a motorcycle circled in front of them, with people waving and carrying signs to mark their big day, the Naples Daily News reported.
“Oh my God,” said Joe Tenaglio, 98, who was moved to tears. “I can’t get over it. I can’t believe it. It’s a total shock.”
Naples couple celebrates 73rd wedding anniversary with surprise parade from friends https://t.co/qrPMFacluS
— Naples Daily News (@ndn) May 3, 2020
“It’s wonderful,” 96-year-old Yolanda Tenaglio added. “It’s a real surprise.”
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The Tenaglios began living at the Lely Palms facility in 2017 after the home they had lived in for three decades in the Riviera Colony subdivision was destroyed by Hurricane Irma, the Daily News reported.
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Friends from their former subdivision visited the Tenaglios regularly, but that was made more difficult when social distancing policies were instituted because of the pandemic. Friends still serenaded the couple and performed dances while the couple watched, but they wanted to do something special for their wedding anniversary, the newspaper reported.
“It’s hard because they can’t get very active when they’re still stuck in their room,” former neighbor Suzie Brackett told the Daily News.
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That is when residents hatched the plan to stage a parade.
“Our community has not forgotten how much they meant to our community and to us,” Cathy Davis, one of the organizers of the anniversary event, told the newspaper.
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When the parade ended, cars parked and the Tenaglios’ friends stood across the drive from the couple, cheering and singing “Happy Anniversary.” Neighbors brought cupcakes, banana bread and brownies to celebrate.
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“I couldn’t believe what I saw today,” Joe Tenaglio told the Daily News. “It proved how many friends my dear wife and I have after 73 years. All those cars and traffic and dear friends I hadn’t seen in a long time. It was unreal. Unreal.”
