Lovebirds crowned ‘world’s oldest married couple’

These long-standing lovebirds are a rare breed.

The newly crowned world’s “oldest married couple” are an adorable pair of former New York centenarians who met during World War II and now swear by the power of curiosity, beers at lunch and “love for each other.”

Eleanor Gittens, 107, and Lyle Gittens, 108, of Miami, were awarded the title by Guinness World Records on Wednesday for a combined age of 216 years and 132 days.

The couple, who have been married for more than 83 years, were also this week named the world’s “longest married couple” by age records tracking organization LongeviQuest.

“They loved life and they loved each other,” said their grandson, Hasani Gittens, 49, a journalist and former reporter for the New York Post.

“They love good food.”

“They are the epitome of partnership,” added Gittens, who is also the founding editor of the news site The City.

“They were both very smart and worldly… and they both valued education very much.”

The two met in 1941 while studying at Clark Atlanta University and were married on June 4, 1942 in Bradenton, Florida.

Eleanor told longeviquest.com that Lyle, who was drafted into the war, was given a pass for three days of Army training at Fort Benning, Georgia, and had to return shortly after the wedding.

“He has to go back to his duties immediately, but as you can see [the love] It lasted,” Eleanor explained.

“I wondered if I would ever see him again,” Eleanor recalled to the West Side Gazette in 2022.

Lyle was soon sent to fight with the 92nd Infantry Division in Italy, and 24-year-old Eleanor, pregnant, moved to New York City, where she met Lyle’s family for the first time.

She found a job in payroll administration at a company that produced aircraft parts for overseas wars and later became a public school teacher.

After Lyle returned from the war, he found a government job at the World Trade Center in New York State.

This hard-working couple started a nightly ritual of drinking martinis together after a long day in the 1950s.

Hasani Gittens said they now keep the tradition alive by having a Modelo or a glass of red wine with lunch. He said his grandparents were both abstemious and enjoyed cooking everything from seafood to collard greens together.

For many years, the couple lived in Brooklyn and had three children: Lyle, Angela and Ignae. Eleanor, 69, earned her doctorate in urban education from Fordham University.

The couple moved to Florida during the pandemic, but Lyle said he still misses New York.

“If you’re not living in New York City, you’re camping,” he told LongeviQuest of the complex, culturally rich center.

When asked about the secret to their marriage’s longevity, Eleanor said: “We just gelled together… We love each other.”

“I love my wife. That’s simple,” Lyle said when asked the same question.

This week the couple took the title of “Longest Married Couple”, a title previously held by him and his wife before his death in October.