2 years ago · navdeep · Comments Off on Resident Spotlight: Lonnie and Shirely Chesney

Resident Spotlight: Lonnie and Shirely Chesney

We are home to so many wonderful residents who have lived rewarding and enriched lives. Whether they raised children or contributed to their communities through work or volunteering, they have left an indelible effect on their families and communities.

This month we are featuring Lonnie and Shirley Chesney. Life circumstances led them to each other for the latter part of their lives. Their passion for antiques led them to careers as antique dealers in Love Field, Texas. Read on for their heartwarming story.

Prior to their meeting and subsequent marriage, the paths of Shirley and Lonnie crossed several times, although they never knew it then. They were both born at the original Parkland Hospital in Dallas, albeit different times. They also both graduated from North Dallas High School.

After high school, Shirley married Joel Chesney and started working at the Airway Theater for three years before working at General Electric’s Lamp Division. Joel worked in his parents’ business in antiques and clocks and watch repair. While they were married, Shirley also worked at Atlantic Refining Company which later changed its name to ARCO. Joel passed after twenty-five years of marriage.

Shirley kept close to the Chesney family after Joel’s passing. After Joel’s father passed, his mother decided to remarry. Lonnie, Joel’s brother, had married very young, but his marriage was dissolved. Shirley and Lonnie had known each other since she was seventeen. He was working as a camera repairman in Highland Park. Lonnie’s mother wanted Shirley and Lonnie to be witnesses at her marriage in Oklahoma. Before leaving, Lonnie asked Shirley to join him at Sterling Jewelry, pick out a couple of wedding bands, and join his mother at the altar for a double wedding ceremony.

Shirley and Lonnie have been married for forty years. They became antique dealers, and Lonnie continued with the clock and watch repair business in a booth in an antique mall near Love Field. Lonnie is proud of his old car hood ornaments collection, and Shirley has a passion for Swarovski crystal.

Their story proves that you never know where life may take you, and the journey may change unexpectedly. This is a wonderful reminder, especially given the current state of our world. While it may seem hard or difficult at the time, whether grieving the death of a loved one, the dissolution of your marriage, or any other type of hardship, with time, the storm shall pass, and brighter days are on the horizon.