Colton and Ashtyn (Drish) Horak, Mary Ann and Leonard Drish, Trevor and Leea Drish, and Corrie and Roger Drish are pictured on Sept. 5, 2024. The four couples share an anniversary.
By Lindsay Steele
The Catholic Messenger
Ashtyn Drish dreamed of marrying the love of her life on Sept. 5 and sharing an anniversary with her great-grandparents, grandparents and parents. They “have shown me the importance of commitment, unconditional love and compromise. They have taught me that building a strong foundation in your marriage is the key to overcoming hardships and maintaining a life of fulfillment.” She hoped to find a partner with whom she could create a relationship worthy of this day.
Ashtyn’s dream came true earlier this year when she married Colton Horak at St. Mary Catholic Church in Fairfield. “I only hope that Colton and I are able to spend a lifetime together committed to our vows and honoring the significance of Sept. 5th.”
Ralph and Mary (Sanders) Peiffer are pictured on their wedding day Sept. 5, 1933.
The tradition started in 1933 when Ralph Peiffer and Mary Sanders married at St. John the Baptist Catholic Church in Houghton. “They married on a Tuesday, which was a normal day for weddings, I guess, back in those days,” said their daughter, Mary Ann, the oldest of 12 children.
Mary Ann met her husband, Leonard Drish, in the early 1950s through Catholic Youth Organization. The couple married on Saturday, Sept. 5, 1953 at St. James Catholic Church in Washington. Mary Ann hadn’t set out to marry on her parents’ 20th anniversary, but “we were planning to get married around that time of year, and it happened to fall right.”
Their son, Roger, and his fiancé, Corrie Skiles, married 40 years later, desiring to do so on Sept. 5. Roger was inspired by his parents’ commitment to their core values of family, religion and work balance while raising eight children. He told Corrie that it would mean a lot to him to carry on the wedding date tradition. Corrie, who had converted to Catholicism with Mary Ann as her sponsor, loved the idea. However, Sept. 5, 1993 fell on Sunday.
Mary Ann (Peiffer) and Leonard Drish are pictured on their wedding day Sept. 5, 1953.
During marriage prep with Father David Brownfield, the couple mentioned their desire to marry on the anniversary of Roger’s parents and grandparents. “Father Brownfield assured us that he could make that happen and we were married in the rectory of St. Frances Xavier Cabrini Parish in Richland on Sept. 5th, with Father and two witnesses,” Corrie said. During Mass Sept. 25 at St. Joseph Catholic Church in East Pleasant Plain, the couple renewed the promises they made to one another on their wedding day, with family and friends present to celebrate.
The couple’s daughter, Ashtyn, took a similar approach to her wedding earlier this year, with a twist. Her brother, Trevor, also wanted to get married on Thursday, Sept. 5, 2024. “He had asked me about a month before proposing to his wife (Leea) if I would be OK with him also taking part in the tradition.” Not a problem! Ashtyn and Colton celebrated their wedding at noon. Trevor, who chose not to marry in the Church, wed fiancé Leea that evening in nearby Brighton. Afterward, the four Drish couples — Mary Ann and Leonard, Roger and Corrie, Ashtyn and Colton, and Trevor and Leea, cut the wedding cake together.
Ashtyn and Colton celebrated with a larger group of family and friends the following Saturday. “Our hearts are full of joy that our children valued this day and are honored they chose Sept. 5 as the date to begin their lives together,” Corrie said. “For us, I think this day symbolizes a tradition of unwavering love and commitment.”
Mary Ann and Leonard are now in their 90s and rent out land on their farm near Polishville. They attend Mass regularly at Ss. Joseph and Cabrini Parish. “We are blessed to witness their lifelong commitment to their vows,” Corrie said. “We value their words of wisdom and appreciate their willingness to share their journey.”
Mary Ann feels blessed to have had a long and fruitful marriage, but admits marriage isn’t all “peaches and cream.” It takes persistence and dedication. “You have to have respect for each other and a lot of give and take,” she said. Their shared Catholic faith has been extremely important. “It’s something that you need to support you all through life.”
