John and Donna Swank celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary on October 19th, 2013. The high school sweethearts were married in 1963 in their hometown of Danville, Illinois. John served in the United States Navy and worked as a Customer Service Rep. with the Xerox Corporation for 30 years. Along with many hobbies that he enjoys, John is a published author and recently finished writing a Christian novel series. He also leads a men’s bible study group at First United Methodist Church in Pace, FL. Donna worked many years as a Dental Assistant in Illinois and Florida, recently retiring from Gilmore Family Dentistry (Dr. John C Gilmore, D.M.D). She currently enjoys gardening, bird watching and serving others at First United Methodist Church in Pace, FL. Together, John and Donna raised two daughters, Judy (Mark) Hayes of Villa Rica, GA and Beth Smith of Pensacola, FL. They are proud grandparents of Nathan Hayes. Family and close friends held a celebration in honor of their 50 years of marriage at Franco’s Italian Restaurant, Pensacola, on October 19th, 2013.
This article originally appeared on Santa Rosa Press Gazette: Couple celebrates 50th wedding anniversary