Love Story: Eileen and Richard Prendergast

Richard Prendergast of New Hyde Park recalls how he swept his wife Eileen off her feet the night they met.

I was working for the New York Telephone Co. in December 1960, when I attended the company's Christmas party in Manhattan. I met up with one of my bosses there. We were at the bar, and he bought us each a shot of whiskey. I didn't drink whiskey and didn't like it, but he insisted, and I gave in.

Now fueled with courage as we went into the dance area, I spied a beautiful, blue-eyed blonde across the dance floor. I went over to her and asked for a dance, and she agreed. Her name was Eileen Tierney. She lived in the Yorkville section of Manhattan and was a secretary with the company. We both worked at the 140 West St. building but didn't know one another.

Normally shy, I chatted about how young people danced back in Park Slope, Brooklyn, and how we could dip. I asked her if she could. I think she said yes, and I proceeded to demonstrate the art of dipping. I lost my balance -- I'm sure it was that Christmas toast at the bar -- and we fell, but I did manage to get her telephone number! She has a great sense of humor and thought it was very funny.

Embarrassed, I called her the next day, apologized and asked for a date. To my surprise, she said yes. We began dating and started to compare notes about our families. We were astonished to discover that our fathers were both from the same very, very small farming village in Roscommon, Ireland. They knew each other as children. How could this happen with 8 million people in the City of New York?!

I married this beautiful woman on Oct. 28, 1961. Our wedding song was "Always." We danced, and I dipped her, and this time no one fell. She has been my dance partner -- and life partner -- for 50 years. We attend dances regularly at the Irish American Club in Mineola.

Eileen left the phone company to become a full-time homemaker after our first child was born. I retired in 1991 as a deskman/tester in the Garden City office and now work part-time as a donor relations associate with the New York Blood Center, Long Island division. Together, we have proudly raised three wonderful children and now have four beloved grandchildren. We recently visited our fathers' small village in Ireland with our family.

I view life as a beautiful journey -- filled with happiness, challenges, the expected, the unknown, change, learning, love and growth. I feel blessed to have my wife, Eileen, by my side "always."