Couple Returns to Wyoming to Celebrate 60th Anniversary in the Church Where they First Tied the Knot

The year was 1963.

A 16-year-old bride married a 19-year-old groom fresh from boot camp.

The bride was visiting family and met Darrel Bogart at a church in Casper, Wyoming.

They went out every evening for two weeks straight.

“We stayed up talking all night,” said Beverly, “The next night, he called his mom and said, ‘I’m in love.’”

The lovebirds wrote letters for three months and married the week he got home.

60 years later, they walked back into the church where they initially tied the knot.

For years it was a Baptist church, but as time passed, things changed—like they do.

Eventually the church shut its doors and was listed for sale.

While the world was googling the effectiveness of masks and figuring out how to navigate work from home, a couple from Casper decided to buy.

“We didn’t want to see it turn into something else,” said Donna Rice.

She and her husband are attorneys. The thing that really drove them to buy the old church was the family aspect. Providing a space for new families to form and old ones to come together.

They opened the building in December 2022.

The revival of the chapel is breathtaking. The Rice's repainted every inch, including all the pews and ceilings.

Everything echoes, and they also have a mobile sound system with multiple mics.

The church has neutral colors and simple, white décor to provide a clean slate for guests to create their own style.

The building is set up to host more than weddings. Funerals, of course, but also business meetings, family reunions, and other such get-togethers.

I talk to the wedding party in the kitchen.

The first to arrive are the Bogarts’ three daughters: Sherri, Terri…and Barbie (who just happens to have bright blue eyes and blonde hair).

The youngest—baby Danny—was born in London.

“We stayed married out of spite,” says Beverly. “We had four children in eight years. We always said, ‘the first one to leave has to take all the kids.”

I implore them for more marital advice.

“We were so young and dumb. Too dumb to be afraid of anything. And we were so far from home, we had to figure out a way to make it work.”

Darrel reaches out to touch Bev’s hand. He looks at me and says, “Military wives are extremely self-sufficient. I don’t think she gives herself enough credit."

They had three children, and one on the way, yet spent 30 days traveling around Europe in a Triumph Spitfire.

“It’s been quite an adventure,” grins Beverly. “It’s still an adventure. Just not as vigorous.”