WEARING a pale green suit and party hat, Rolf Zeltins made a move on his beloved as she danced across the ballroom floor.
He had only met Carmen once previously in Perth, but he already knew she was different to others.
It was not just her graceful moves, it was the way she spoke – directly and honestly.
“She said what she meant and she didn’t pull any punches,” Mr Zeltins said.
The couple married three months later on October 17, 1953, at St Joachim's Catholic Church and celebrate 65 years together this month.
Carmen, 83, remembers their second meeting fondly.
Rolf had told her she was a nice lady before telling her then boyfriend, a Yugoslav, to leave.
“He was forward to me,” she said.
Rolf had arrived in Australia after being displaced from Latvia during WWII, with a daring attitude a personal quality forged through hardship.
He and his family had walked 1500 kilometres to escape Russian-occupied Latvia, where Rolf’s father was at risk of being killed for his role in the secret service.
They had foraged from rubbish bins and ducked bullets before making it to a displaced persons camp, called Insula, in Austria.
Rolf, 87, considers himself lucky despite all that.
He had survived WWII and used Hitler’s home toilet in Bavaria after Allied victory, before immigrating to Australia at 17 to start afresh.
He thought that making a life with his beloved Carmen – who shone with smarts and industriousness – would be great.
Carmen was forced to leave India with her family after the country became independent from Britain in 1947. Her father George had been a train driver there before leaving with his family for Australia.
Carmen, born in Bengal, recounts how she once refused a proposal from the Prince of Brunei.
It is just one of the many tales the couple, who had four children, share together.
Rolf said he supported his family by working different roles in Australia.
He gardened, assembled tractors, worked in a Hancock-owned asbestos mine and nursed patients at a tuberculosis clinic before beginning work as a linesman, security officer and then retirement home caretaker.
Carmen began working at Coles at 13.
Her father had used cigarette ash to change her birth year on her ID, making her appear two years older so she could get a job.
She stayed with Coles until she had her first child but never lost her zest for work.
In 1974, Carmen had a team of 50 women selling Tupperware and set sales records.
She appeared on Channel Nine television show Who Wants to be a Millionaire in 2010, winning $20,000.
Rolf and Carmen have nine grandchildren and seven great grandchildren.
Daughter Lee Fuller said her parents, who moved to the Redlands almost 15 years ago, were still in love and enjoyed their independence, with family celebrations planned for their 65th wedding anniversary.
