Roswitha and Paul Philipp Walter Celebrate 60 Years of Marriage: A Lifetime of Love and Community Engagement

Roswitha and Paul Philipp Walter celebrate their diamond wedding anniversary — their 60th marriage anniversary — in Ravensburg. In Kisslegg, where the bride lived at the time, they went to the registry office on August 13, 1963 and celebrated the church wedding a day later. But they moved into their apartment on Obere Breite Straße in Ravensburg. The two spend their old age not far away, namely in a neat attic apartment in the brother house. From the terrace there you have a wonderful view of the city.

Stayed at home for the four children

The couple got to know each other at their former workplace, namely the Ravensburg district office. Paul Philipp Walter completed his legal clerkship there, and his future wife trained as a senior administrative officer. They got married after the groom had passed his second state exam and found a job as a lawyer in a law firm in Saulgau. “My father, who was mayor of Kisslegger at the time, would have liked to see me stay in public administration. But soon the first of our four children came. And so I stayed at home and took care of the children and the household,” says Roswitha Walter.

When the apartment in the city center became too small for the large family, the Walters built their own home in the countryside. But in 2015 they moved into their current rental apartment and handed the house over to their youngest son, who lives there with his wife and two children. “The house with its garden had become too big and cumbersome for both of us. So it made sense to make room for the next generation. We have found an amicable solution with our children,” the Walters report.

Handed over self-painted icons to Orthodox bishop

It wasn’t easy to downsize, they remember: “We had to part with a lot of books and were only able to take part of our icon collection with us.” However, the Walters didn’t buy the icons. Paul Philipp Walter painted them all himself. And now the orthodox community in Bregenz is also benefiting from this art-loving hobby. The Orthodox bishop even came to hand over the icons.

“Our life has always been shaped by our Christian convictions. It was therefore a matter of course for us to do voluntary work in our parishes, especially in St. Jodok and Liebfrauen,” say the Walters. Roswitha Walter worked in the hospital pastoral care in the Heilig-Geist-Spital until the outbreak of the corona pandemic. Today she is still active in the seniors’ club in Hirschgraben.

At the age of 87, people no longer drive a car

After 23 years as a lawyer, her husband took over the management of the entire church care in Tettnang with five parishes and numerous social institutions. He was responsible for around a hundred employees, he said. “I always commuted from Ravensburg to my workplace,” he reports. “But now I don’t drive anymore. At the age of 87 you should let that be. We don’t get on our pedelecs anymore either.”

The Walters loved to travel when they were younger and hiked a lot in the mountains. There aren’t many peaks in the Alps that they haven’t climbed together. “Now we look at the mountains from below or use the cable car,” says Paul Philipp Walter with a wink. The fact that physical strength decreases in old age is just the way of things. “But we’re still in love with each other,” the two affirm in unison. And within the scope of their possibilities, they continue to take part in public life – also in the form of daily newspaper reading.

“Here people die bravely, so let’s enjoy the time that is still granted to us”

The contact with the children, the 14 grandchildren between the ages of 5 and 32 and the great-grandson means that the Walters never get bored. They are also well connected in the community of the Brother House. Paul Philipp Walter comments on the fact that this is a temporary community: “Here people die valiantly, so we enjoy the time that is still granted to us. And in which we ourselves can certainly live.”