Maybe it was that fiftieth anniversaries were uncommon in 1929, or maybe it was the particular couple celebrating their fiftieth that made it such a celebration. It probably was both. Elizabeth Chamberlain Pfeiffer and Albert Henry Pfeiffer II were married in June of 1879 when she was 16 and he was 22. The celebration activities for their fiftieth anniversary took an entire seven days.

First, they were guests of the Monte Vista Rotary Club, where they spoke about their colorful and interesting pioneer pasts. Grandma wore her plum colored velvet floor-length gown with a cluster of silkwood violets at the neckline. She carried a lovely white satin purse, a pouch designed with a silken cord. She wore a long floor-length cape of white bengaline. Grandpa wore a black suit, white shirt and black tie. Over his suit, he wore a beautifully crafted, beaded Indian Jacket, that he inherited from his venerable father, Colonel Albert Henry Pfeiffer. The couple were handsome and charming and quickened the hearts of any group sitting before them. Grandma was, a good story teller and related many humorous episodes. She loved to speak and rose to the occasion. She could have been a star in any movie of the day and surely a match for the actress, Mary Pickford whom she adored.

Grandpa was retiring and composed. He too spoke and it would have been interesting to hear more of what he had to say about being raised on army posts, entrusted to the care of officers' families' while Colonel Pfeiffer served in army outposts. But, Grandpa let Grandma have most of the limelight and she reveled in it and delighted her audience. They spoke to many organizations of their life experiences and even after Grandpa died, Grandma continued to be in demand as a speaker.

Well, about the wedding anniversary celebration, after the couple had been guests at the banquet given by the Rotary Club, and they had been presented with a purse containing gold coins, the entire -family was invited to a banquet that the Parent and Teacher Association of the Marsh School hosted. Guests included their six daughters, their husbands and fourteen grandchildren. I remember this grand occasion in detail. Everyone who was a dignitary of some kind was invited. The guests were seated at tables covered with white cloths. A great golden bell hung from the high ceiling of the school auditorium and, at a given cue, a cord was pulled and a thousand petals of gold-colored

crepe paper showered the guests. At that moment, the band played "Golden Wedding Days" and "Silver Threads Among the Gold", favorites of Albert and Lizzie. There were tears of joy, of love, of gratefulness, and tears simply because of the beauty of it all. The stage was as array of lilac blossoms where the entire family was seated. A special individual in the community, who had a glorious voice, Mrs. Charles Edman, sang several songs. The band played some more numbers. It was all Grandma could do to refrain from getting up to dance "a little schottische". I think she would have, had it not been so difficult to hold up her elegant gown. The three oldest teenage grandsons, played a trumpet trio.

The wedding cake seemed to be three stories tall to the little children in their memories. The local bakery, operated by the Whittemores, baked it for the celebration and they also furnished white napkins with the words, "Congratulations Mr. and Mrs. Pfeiffer", in gold lettering. Another celebration was a luncheon reception given in honor of Grandma and Grandpa with speakers and vocal numbers with all very special individuals involved, respected and talented. The Lt. Governor of Colorado gave the address that day. No children were there that day.

Then there was the moving picture crew that came in from Hollywood. They filmed Grandma and Grandpa walking around the ranch where they were married. The film crew vowed they would long remember this assignment, for they had not met such a wondrous couple. Afterwards, some of the members of the crew would stop to visit them when traveling through the area. The film of Lizzie and Albert taken at the ranch was shown at the local theater along with a western movie to a full house, free to all who wanted to come as an anniversary gift from the theater owner. The grandchildren all attended and sat in the front row.

I'm sure it gave my mother, Lena Elliott, their oldest daughter, with whom grandma and Grandpa lived, some respite, as most of the entire week and other family members were in and out with some staying the entire week. There were meals to prepare, household tasks to stay up with, guests to greet who were calling on Grandma and Grandpa at home when there were no other events taking place, her children and their friends to watch, Grandma's and Grandpa's banquet clothes to keep freshened and pressed and schedules to organize.

On Sunday, the last day of the weeks celebration activities, Lena hosted a reception at the family home. The large yard was beautiful with lilac bushes as high as the eaves of the house, all in full bloom. It was good that fifty years ago, Grandma and Grandpa were married in June because all the other flowers they had planted on the five acres of land that surrounded the home were also in bloom. The guests parked their cars in the lane and entered through the gate house which was covered with woodbine, wild hops and mountain clematis. I remember sitting in the gate house watching the guests arrive, the women in flowing, gaily-colored frocks and wearing large flowered hats. The guests were long-time family friends of pioneer days, neighbors, authors, members of the chamber of commerce, representatives from Adams State College and the State Historical Society, newspaper reporters, photographers and friends coming down from Creede and up from the southern end of the Valley. At the end of the day, the photographers took a family portrait.

Albert Henry Pfeiffer died at home while being cared for by Lizzie and Lena that same year in December. In time, Lizzie donned her plum-colored velvet gown with the silkwood violets at the neckline and continued to speak all over the state to schools, colleges and historical societies. She died in June. 1950, twenty-one years after her fiftieth wedding anniversary. Even though it's been forty years since Lizzie's death, memories of Albert and Lizzie Pfeiffer remain through the programs that are still being given and the articles that are still being written about their lives.