Love Story: Cathy and Joe Scibelli of East Norwich

Cathy and Joe Scibelli of East Norwich recommend the supermarket when shopping for a mate. Cathy explains how it worked for them - and for her parents.

In 1944, during the days of wartime ration coupons, my mother was an 18-year-old checker at the A&P supermarket in Northampton, Mass. A customer named Mae always had several young children in tow and my Mom would sneak extra rations of milk or sugar to her.

They became good friends and Mae used to tell my mother, "I have a brother who would be perfect for you. He's in the Army, but when he comes home on leave, I'm going to bring him to meet you."

True to her word, one afternoon Mae came into the store with a 22-year-old Army private named Bill Gonski and said to him, "This is my friend Edith. I want you to take her out." Bill lived in Manhasset and was visiting. He asked Edith out and they had several dates before Bill left for a tour of duty in the Aleutian Islands. They corresponded and, after he was discharged from the Army, they began dating in earnest. Bill and Edith, my parents, were married on June 9, 1946, my mother's birthday.

In 1981, my mother was once again working as a checker in an A&P supermarket, this time in Manhasset. My Dad had passed away several years earlier, so my mother, a housewife all her married life, had gone back to the one job in which she had experience.

One afternoon a young man came into the store to meet a friend who worked there. While waiting he started packing orders for my mom. She thanked him and he jokingly said to her: "I'm looking for a nice girl to marry. By any chance do you have a daughter?" My mother laughed and said, "Yeah, I've got one at home I'd like to marry off!"

That night my Mom in her usual teasing manner said to me, "I found some idiot named Joe who will take you off my hands." She told me about her helper and I laughed and said, "Why didn't you tell him to call me?"

Several nights later I went to pick up my mother at work and, while I was waiting, Joe came in to meet his friend. We struck up a random conversation. He didn't know who I was, and I had no idea he was the helper my mother had told me about until she walked over to us. When Joe realized who I was, we all had a good laugh.

And then he asked me out to dinner. We were both 26. After dating for two years, Joe and I were married on June 4, 1983, my father's birthday.