Orem man 'most romantic in world'
She's only exaggerating a little. Ted Gibbons hasn't officially earned the title "World's Greatest Romantic," but he is one of the five finalists in a national romance contest sponsored by Princess Cruises.
Of course, being a romantic, Ted Gibbons doesn't take any of the credit.
"I think anyone would be romantic married to my wife," said the 62-year-old LDS Institute teacher during an interview in his home last week.
The two, who raised 12 children together, will celebrate their 40th wedding anniversary next month, but they still look at each other like they are newlyweds.
"We really are in love — desperately, marvelously in love," said Ted Gibbons, tenderly reaching across the kitchen table to cradle his wife's hand in his. "I could not endure a day or a week, let alone an eternity without you."
In the moment, he seemed to forget he was in middle of an interview with the Deseret News.
"There he goes again," Lydia Gibbons sighed, color creeping across her cheeks as she nervously eyed the reporter.
But she wasn't really complaining. Blushing is just a side effect of having an affectionate husband.
The Gibbons' video isn't as flashy as the other finalist entries, which are posted online, but it's poignantly heartfelt.
The couple shot the video in their kitchen. They didn't use video-editing software to add fancy transitions. They didn't set the mood with romantic music.
Lydia Gibbons simply told the contest judges about the things her husband does to show his love.
The hardest part of making the video — besides getting the machinery to work — was staying within the three-minute time limit, she said.
"He does so much for me," she said. "I really could go on forever."
Every holiday, Ted Gibbons surprises his wife with something special. It's always creative and usually hand-made.
For her 31st birthday, he chose 31 of his wife's qualities and wrote a poem about each one.
One Valentine's Day, Lydia Gibbons woke up to find her home covered in paper hearts. There was one heart for each week the couple had been married. Once they were all collected, they spelled out a poem.
On her 59th birthday, he sent her on a treasure hunt. At the end was a jewelry box full of gold — limited edition gold dollars and foil-wrapped chocolate, that is.
Ted Gibbons' specialty, though, is making books. Over the years he's written a veritable library of them.
Recent comments
I just read this article forwarded to me about TED and his wife....
Lori | May 8, 2008 at 5:30 p.m.
I just found out about the competition. Although the decision has...
KSO in Phoenix | April 21, 2008 at 11:05 a.m.
That was a nice story would loved to have heard more. I was married...
Anne | April 16, 2008 at 2:13 a.m.
