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This is such a heartwarming story!
By Bernadette Giacomazzo — Written on Aug 19, 2019
It's hard to believe that the original Woodstock was 50 years ago this August. Often imitated, but never duplicated, the original Woodstock festival was billed, at the time, as an "Aquarian Exposition," in keeping in line with the so-called "Summer of Love." One couple stands out today because, 50 years ago, they met at Woodstock, and have been together ever since. Recently, they came across the first ever picture that they took together. Who are Jerry and Judy Griffin?
Let's look at what we know about this enchanting couple.
1. They met when her car broke down.
According to Inside Edition, when Judy was on her way to the festival, her car broke down on the road about 90 miles from the festival grounds in Bethel, New York. Jerry saw her in distress and picked her up, giving her a ride to the infamous concert.
2. Jerry and Judy Griffin had what they call an "instant connection."
"In that moment Jerry, who was caravanning to the festival with a group of friends in two VW Beetles, thought his luck had definitely changed for the better. “I thought, ‘Okay, this is definitely unusual. We just picked up this really cute girl. And I’m going to Woodstock and I’ve got a tent and she doesn’t,’" he told People Magazine.
3. They have been married for more than 50 years.
According to The Huffington Post, Jerry and Judy Griffin had a whirlwind courtship that led them to getting married not long after they met. They've been married for more than 50 years and have two sons (and five grandchildren!) together.
4. Jerry and Judy Griffin didn't take pictures at Woodstock '69.
“We both had cameras, but neither of us took any pictures,” Jerry recalls about that day. “For 50 years we’ve been looking for a picture of ourselves, and out of the blue one shows up. We’d known each other less than 48 hours when that was taken," he told DoYouRemember.com.
5. Their "first photo" showed up in a PBS documentary.
According to ABC 7 New York, the couple's first photo together turned up in a PBS documentary about the infamous festival. Jerry and Judy Griffin, meanwhile, didn't realize it was featured in the documentary until a friend of theirs sent them a text about it.
6. Jerry and Judy Griffin's "first picture" even turned up on an anniversary cake!
“Our kids surprised us with this wonderful cake,” Judy, 72, says and shared a photo of the cake with People. The writing on the cake reads, “Happy 50th Anniversary!,” alongside an edible reprinting of the long lost photo of Jerry and Judy at Woodstock that they had been searching for for the last five decades," she told MSN.com.
What a great story!
Bernadette Giacomazzo is an editor, writer, and photographer whose work has appeared in People, Teen Vogue, Us Weekly, The Source, XXL, HipHopDX, The Los Angeles Times, The New York Post, and more. She is also the author of The Uprising series. For more information about Bernadette Giacomazzo, click here.