Less than three weeks before her birthday, Diane Bennett Hale learned that her husband, Cpl. Charles Bennett, has been killed in Viet Nam. Still, on July 25 of 1968 and almost every year after that, she gets a bouquet of red roses, a token of love and friendship from her sister-in-law.

“He’d sent a letter to his mother, asking her to give me roses for my birthday,” Hale said. “She cut out that part of his letter and taped it to the card.”

Sister Cathy Owens said that Hale was her best friend and she wanted to carry on the tradition. “There didn’t really seem to be a good stopping place,” Owen’s recalled.

Even when Hale remarried, the roses kept coming. “Sometimes, I’d get two dozen. One from Cathy and one from my husband.”

Even before the two started dating, Owen’s knew who Hale was – they lived in the same neighbor-hood.

“We’d see each other in passing,” Hale said.

“He’d point to her and say he was going to take her out one day,” Owen’s said.

Bennett’s chance came after Hale’s car broke down on her way home. A friend saw her stranded and offered her a ride home.

“I told him to drop me off at the corner,” she said.

Knowing Bennett worked on cars, she walked up to him and asked if he’d repair hers. He agreed and once the car was working again, she asked how much she owed him.

“A date,” he answered.

That was in May 1967 and the two wed in October. He was drafted into the Army, where he was placed in an infantry unit. Once he was stationed in Hawaii, she was able to join him for six weeks, the longest they were together before he died on July 7.

Even though she remarried to Donald Hale, she and Cathy remained close. “They took him (Don-ald Hale) in just like he was family. Our children were a part of their family, too,” she said. “It’s made a lot easier.”

In fact, Owens met her husband, Jimmy, over at their house. He was a co-worker with Diane and Donald Hale and stopped by their house one evening. Owens said there was a knock on the door and without knowing who was there, she joked, “That’s the man I’m going to marry.”

Turns out, she was right and after almost 40 years, they are still family to each other.

“We best friends, forever,” said Hale.