By Leighah Beausoleil
Contributing Writer
WESTBOROUGH — In 1979, Bonnie (Walker) and Paul Thiesing were named Westborough High School’s Class Couple less than a year into dating. Now, the two have been together for about 48 years – and happily married for 42.
They grew up together attending Westborough Public Schools. Living only one street from each other, a 13-year-old Paul would bring his horse over to the Walker Dairy Farm and charge Bonnie’s cousins 10 cents for rides.
At Westborough High School, Bonnie was on the Color Guard, while Paul was a member of the marching band. That’s where he first began to “spy” on Bonnie, he joked, considering her as a potential date for the upcoming Junior Prom.
A million thoughts ran through Bonnie’s head when the question finally came, but in the end, she said “yes.” The two had a nice night at the dance, which was themed “Miracles.” They’ve been together ever since.
They had their first official date at the Worcester Center Galleria, paying $2.50 for tickets to see “The Goodbye Girl.” Bonnie recalls how awkward they were together, especially when Paul made his first attempt to hold her hand as they made their way inside.
But the awkwardness of the new love between the two 16-year-olds would soon subside as they grew closer, spending nights doing their physics homework together, and eventually winning the title of “Class Couple.”
“At least we weren’t class clowns,” Paul remarked with a smile.
When it came time to go to the Senior Ball, Bonnie had a full leg cast after knee surgery – but that didn’t stop her from dancing. When they went to the after-party, Paul exited the car, which slowly started to roll backwards. Cast-bound Bonnie was helpless as Paul jumped back in the car before anything bad happened.
After graduation, the two headed to different state schools for college. While Bonnie was down at Southern Massachusetts University (now UMass Dartmouth) studying Spanish and business, Paul was over in Lowell completing a degree in mechanical engineering. Their only forms of communication were through “lots of letters” and the phone in the hallway of the dorm.
They couldn’t bear being apart.
After returning home from a seven-week trip in Spain – with, again, no way to truly contact one another – Bonnie recalls having been awake for 24 hours from her travels. “I was just bubbling and talking up a storm and he was strangely quiet – quieter than usual,” she said.
That’s when Paul popped the question.
The two were married on a windy August day in 1983 by Westborough’s beloved late Rev. Frederick Robert Brown at the Baptist Church right next door to Town Hall. Their reception was held at the Knights of Columbus in Shrewsbury. When they arrived, Paul’s cousin had already taken to the dance floor, and it was interesting to see his loud Italian family mingled with the quiet, conservative Walkers.
Driving down to Virginia for their honeymoon, they visited King’s Dominion and then Busch Gardens – back when there was only one rollercoaster, which Paul rode while Bonnie stayed safely on the ground. In a carnival game, he won her a pink stuffed hippo, which still sits in the garage of their Grafton home: “We can’t seem to get rid of it,” Bonnie said with a laugh.
Heading home on the George Washington Bridge, just after the toll, Paul’s 1971 Malibu overheated and they had to pull over. Bonnie remembers looking over at Paul and joking with him: “I guess the honeymoon’s over.”
Arriving back at their apartment in Lowell, it dawned on Bonnie that she would have to cook. Attempting to make some spaghetti, she ended up accidentally burning herself. She recalls sitting on the couch, embarrassed and hiding her face.
Paul came over to comfort her: “It was sweet,” she said.
Though they have somewhat opposite personalities, they share the same values and interests – spending time together hiking in the mountains of New Hampshire, golfing, kayaking, and now playing pickleball.
“We laugh a lot, which is one of those keys to a happy marriage,” she said. “To the point of tears sometimes.”
Though they have great memories of the many trips they’ve been on, Bonnie said sitting outside on their porch on a nice morning and having breakfast together, she’ll often think to herself: “Who needs to go on vacation?”
“We’ve been blessed for sure,” she added.
“Being a parent for the first time is just amazing,” Paul said. Although neither knew what they were doing, they did it together. They now have two daughters, 38 and 36, and two granddaughters, 4 and 2, who they absolutely adore.
“We’re not the same people we were then and that’s a good thing – that you grow and learn together through the years and survive the tough times,” Bonnie said.
She added she’s appreciated Paul’s support through everything, including when she was diagnosed with breast cancer. “I don’t ever want to forget that because I never took it for granted that I was at the mercy of God through all that,” Bonnie said. “I would say that’s really where we’ve grown the most.”
The two continue to enjoy each other’s company, especially now that Paul is newly retired and Bonnie works from home part-time.
On the morning the couple met with the Fifty Plus Advocate, Paul had stumbled upon a relic that truly demonstrated just how far back their connection was. The two had been in the same second grade class and were given small booklets to fill out with details such as their name, their teacher’s name, their favorite movie, and their “pal.”
Photos/Submitted
“I didn’t remember it, but there he is,” Bonnie said, pointing to the page entitled “Somebody Nice.”
As a second-grader, Bonnie had etched Paul’s name in.
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