Two young adults – Mary Helen from Clermont, Iowa, and Arlo from Cresco, Iowa, – found themselves at the popular Matter’s Ballroom, a favorite gathering spot in Decorah, Iowa, for young adults. Thanks to a mutual friend, their paths crossed that evening, sparking a love story that would last a lifetime.
Mary Helen Matt, who was living in Clermont with her parents and running a beauty salon, recalls the moment fondly, “I was there with a bunch of my girlfriends, and one of them knew Arlo.” Her friend exclaimed, “Arlo is here – do you want to meet him?” I said, “Sure.” Mary Helen walked to the other side of the room to meet Arlo, who humorously commented, “Notice, she came over to meet me.” Arlo asked Mary Helen out that night and was turned down because she did not know him. Arlo wanted to take Mary Helen home, which was 60 miles from Decorah. He asked if she would go with him to another dance, a church fundraiser, if he bought tickets. She eagerly said, “Okay.”
While Mary Helen enjoyed dancing several nights a week at Matter’s, the Inwood Ballroom in Spillville, or Nob Hill north of Decorah, Arlo didn’t date frequently. He did not want to leave his mother home alone, as she had been widowed after his father’s death in 1964.
Arlo, the son of Joe and Christina Schmitt, had grown up on a farm in Lawler, Iowa, before his family moved to Cresco in 1953, where they bought a farm. Arlo was about 12 years old at the time.
Mary Helen, the daughter of Arthur and Alberta Matt, had lived on a farm near Clermont until her freshman year of high school, when her parents retired and moved to town. After high school, Mary Helen went to cosmetology school in Cedar Rapids and returned to Clermont to run the local beauty shop for two years before marrying Arlo.
Arlo proposed at the Inwood Ballroom in Spillville. On September 18, 1965, 21-year-old Mary Helen married 23-year-old Arlo at St. Peter’s Catholic Church in Clermont. Mary Helen had wanted to wait until she turned 21 to get married.
The Mabel area couple will celebrate 60 years of wedded bliss this fall.
Mary Helen chose royal blue for her bridesmaids’ dresses, a color she loved, as evidenced by the blue accents in their home today. After the ceremony, the guests headed down to the church basement for dinner, followed by a reception at her parents’ home. It started to rain after the bride and groom left for their honeymoon. Mary Helen said she felt so sorry for her mom because the ends on the carpet curled up because it was so wet.
Mary Helen shared a favorite memory. Her dad always made wine for each of his daughters when they got married. The grape and dandelion wine was really good and enjoyed by all the guests.
Surprisingly, the couple did not have a wedding dance, which was traditionally something that the groom would pay for, along with the liquor. Arlo explained that his mom had given him a set amount of money for the wedding and being the “penny pincher” that he was, he made the decision to spend the money on a dryer instead of a dance. He explained that back in 1965 his mother did not have a dryer. She used a ringer washer and carried the clothes upstairs to dry on a clothes rack. He thought it would be nice if his bride-to-be had a dryer. Mary Helen admitted that she would have liked to have had a dance, but she really appreciated the dryer. Plus, Arlo was eager to start their honeymoon.
The couple’s honeymoon took them to the Wisconsin Dells, and a side trip to Chicago. The couple’s married life started off by coming up on an car accident at the intersection of Hwy. 44 and Locust Road east of Mabel. No one was hurt, they just needed a ride.
Reflecting on their long and happy marriage, Mary Helen shares a simple piece of advice for newlyweds: “Be willing to give and take. It’s not all your way or all his way. You must compromise.”
Arlo shared a funny story from his youngest daughter’s wedding. While the wedding party was standing in the receiving line, a man came up who Arlo describes as one of the foremost authorities on marriage. This man shared a piece of advice with the young couple, “Just be good to each other.” Arlo continued to explain that he later shared the story with the local priest after he had just given a homily on marriage. The priest asked him what this expert did for a living, and Arlo replied with a smile that this “expert” ran a liquor store for 30 years and was not a marriage counselor or professor that taught marriage classes.
Together, Mary Helen and Arlo have built a life full of love, hard work, mutual respect, and lots of laughs.
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