SENIORS
Miller, a former certified nursing assistant, joked that she may become her new groom’s full-time caretaker soon. She’s unbothered by the nation. “Down the road, if he needed care, I would have some medical ability there,” she said. “In the meantime, great companion.” That was the original plan when she moved in. But instead, they fell in love, which Miller says means everything it means to young people. “It’s physical; it’s heart to heart,” she said, quoting Ecclesiastes 4:12, which highlights the strength found in partnership. Why marry so late in life? Their faith says living together should be within marriage. “We’re religious and the church says two people should get together and marry,” Mitchell said. Added Miller: “I couldn’t just live with him. Even at our age ... neither one of us felt comfortable about that.” As Elvis Presley would say, what Mitchell and Miller have is a “burning love.” “My favorite thing is how in the morning he’ll say to me, ‘It’s just so nice to look across the table and not see an empty chair,’” Miller said. “When you’ve been married as long as he had, even 12 years being alone, you never get used to it.” Mitchell turned to his new bride and said, “When I look at Kathy, I get more and more warm all over, and I just want to give her a big hug and just hold her close all the time.”
HOW OLD ARE AMERICANS WHEN THEY GET MARRIED?
Left: Attendees extend their hands toward the newlyweds as a sign of support, unity and intercession. Right: Mitchell and Miller share their first kiss.
“If I’m not careful, it likes to sneak in and remind me that, ‘You’re going to be alone and sad again,’” she said. On the day of the wedding, her son reminded her that even six more months of love is better than none. It’s now or never A couple of years after Joan died, Mitchell moved back to Arizona in 2016 and met Miller through their church and mutual friend, Oldfield. Miller and her late husband had lived in
Acacia Crossings until 2012, regularly attending Maricopa Lutheran Church before moving to Mesa to be closer to hospice care for Richard. Last year, when Oldfield planned to visit Miller, he invited Mitchell to join. Their visits for dinner became more frequent, and the idea of Miller moving back to Maricopa arose. “I had this extra bedroom here, and I thought maybe she could come out and use the bedroom while she was looking for a place to live,” Mitchell said.
12 years her senior. “That little disagreement’s not very important because you might not be here tomorrow.” She added she never wanted the last words spoken between them to be anything but love: “I don’t ever want that on your heart — that their last words with the person you love were bad.” Though the 17-year age difference between her and Mitchell crosses her mind, Miller tries to see it positively — even when that little voice in her head doesn’t want her to.
Source: United States Cencus Bureau American Community Survey
NUMBER OF PEOPLE MARRIED PER 1,000 UNMARRIED AMERICANS AGES 15+
GERIATRIC MARRIAGE IN AMERICA
54.3% 57.4% 35.3% 20.9% 5.2% 15.2% 5.2% 6.6% 1990 2022 1990 2022 1990 2022
Percentage married older adults (age 50+)
Percentage widowed older adults
BRYAN MITCHELL WAS ON THE COVER OF THE FEBRUARY 2018 EDITION OF INMARICOPA
Percentage never married older adults
MAGAZINE. SCAN FOR A DIGITAL COPY.
Percentage divorced older adults
1990
2022
Source: Institute of Family Studies, U.S. Census Data, September 2022
Mitchell (left) and Terry Oldfield perform a song for Miller.
Source: Bowling Green State University
InMaricopa.com | August 2025
August 2025 | InMaricopa.com
30
31
Powered by FlippingBook