AMDG
Their Secrets to a 60 Year Marriage.
Brother Sir Knight Mel Simon (4th Degree) and
his wife Lydia recently celebrated their 60th Wedding Anniversary. In an era when young couples have a hard time
keeping their marriage going for five years, they kept it going for 60 years through
good times and bad, highs and lows, joys and sorrows. How did they do it? What is their secret? Mel says “Faith, devotion, and trust in God”.
“One may not get what he asks for, but God
grants a better way. God answers prayers
for the family not necessarily the way we want, but for our best” (in the long
run).
Lydia says: “It was a partnership; I did everything for him;
I did everything he asked me to do. I
took my wedding vows seriously; I honored the man I married by being submissive
to him.” Old fashioned? Perhaps, but it worked. Furthermore,
it’s Biblical and if the husband has the last word after considerable dialogue,
conflict is minimized.
“I attribute all to God. He was the center of our marriage. When there was a misunderstanding and I was angry, I prayed and trusted God…….’Let go; let God’……one day at a time.” Together they tried to maintain a Christ centered home, educating the children in the faith, advising them, praying together and assisting at Mass every Sunday as a family.
“I attribute all to God. He was the center of our marriage. When there was a misunderstanding and I was angry, I prayed and trusted God…….’Let go; let God’……one day at a time.” Together they tried to maintain a Christ centered home, educating the children in the faith, advising them, praying together and assisting at Mass every Sunday as a family.
How Mel and Lydia Met. They were both born in the
Philippine Islands and survived the Japanese occupation. As a boy Mel narrowly escaped death when the
city hospital was bombed a few minutes after he left. Once he heard the air raid siren sound,
little Mel jumped through the window and rolled down the hill to safety.
Lydia and Mel were there when their hero, General Douglas
MacArthur was forced to escape through a blockade in a PT boat to Corregidor and Australia to regroup his forces. Four years later with the approval of U.S.
President Harry Truman, he kept his pledge, “I shall return” and landed in
Leyte with massive U.S. and allied forces to liberate the Philippines from the
yoke of the Japanese occupation.
Mel studied Medicine after high school against the wishes of
his father who wanted him to study Agriculture with assurance of a job after
graduation because his father was a Division Superintendent of the government
school system. Instead, he enrolled at the University of Santo Tomás College of
Liberal Arts in Pre-medicine.
Meanwhile, Lydia studied Pre-Nursing at the same institution
in Manila with Mel’s sister Trini. After
both completed their nursing studies, Lydia went to work as a nurse at San
Lazaro Hospital. Trini went to San Juan
de Dios Hospital and then to Mary Chiles Hospital prior to furthering her post
graduate studies at New York Polyclinic Medical Center. Meanwhile Lydia was accepted at St. Mary’s
Hospital, an affiliate of the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota.
While Mel was doing his internship, his fraternity in medical school was going to hold a Valentine’s Party, at a five star hotel, the
Manila Hotel Fiesta Pavilion before graduation.
Since neither Mel nor his fraternity brother William Sales had a date in
mind, the latter asked for a suggestion, Mel thought of Lydia who was a close
friend of his younger sister Trini. But
the dormitory, where all single nurses live, enforced the dorm policy that no
ladies can leave the dorm alone at night without an escort. Lydia quickly thought of Gerry, her
roommate. The double date was on!
This was a stroke of luck for Willie which proved to be the beginning of his lifetime relationship. It was also providential for Mel because that was the beginning of his romance with Lydia. Their relationship solidified; they fell in love and now you know the rest of the story.
This was a stroke of luck for Willie which proved to be the beginning of his lifetime relationship. It was also providential for Mel because that was the beginning of his romance with Lydia. Their relationship solidified; they fell in love and now you know the rest of the story.
Before immigrating separately to the United States on June
30, 1959, Mel and Lydia were engaged.
Mel went to the Cook County Hospital for his rotating internship in
Chicago and Lydia went to St. Mary’s Hospital and Mayo Clinic in Rochester,
Minnesota.
Willie and Gerry also got engaged, but they stayed in the
Philippines. After four months of not
seeing each other, Mel and Lydia decided that it was time to get married. On October 24, 1959 their Nuptial Mass was the
first Filipino wedding ever at St. John’s Catholic Church in Rochester,
Minnesota.
The Young Immigrants Together Pursue the American Dream. In 1966 Mel completed his two years of surgical
residency and four years in Urology. Dr.
Charles Holzer, Jr. and Dr. Charles Holzer, Sr. --medical pioneers in
southeastern Ohio and founders of a hospital system that bears their name-- invited
Dr. Mel for an interview with all expenses paid. Recommended by Dr. J. Lester Wilkey, the
Chief of Urology at Cook County Hospital, Mel accepted the invitation to join
Holzer Clinic and as Chief of the Department of Urology in Gallipolis, Ohio and
later at Pleasant Valley Hospital WV.
Dr. Mel passed over five other opportunities in Wisconsin, Indiana and
Illinois.
Through
hard work, sheer determination, and Lydia’s help, Dr. Mel became a very successful
and eminent urologist --certified by the American Board of Urology and by the
American College of Surgeons as well as the International College of Surgeons--
on both banks of the Ohio River, serving the communities of Gallia County,
Jackson County, and Meigs Counties in Ohio and Mason County and Jackson County
in West Virginia. Dr. Mel became active
in medical societies and was a full Colonel in the Air Force Reserve.
He
also founded the first acupuncture practice in the river cities of Gallipolis
and Point Pleasant when it was first introduced by the American Medical
Association at which time Dr. Simon was accused locally by his peers of
practicing “voodoo medicine”. Dr. Simon
stood his ground against all odds and soon other local doctors began to offer
acupuncture as an alternative.
 |
Lydia and Mel Simon celebrate their 60th
wedding anniversary with the community at the Ariel Theatre, a restored opera
house and home of the Ohio Valley Symphony in Gallipolis, Ohio.
Team Simon. Let
us emphasize that Dr. Simon did not do it alone. There is considerable truth in the
saying: “Behind every successful man there
is a woman.” That’s his help mate,
Lydia always at his side as faithful friend, personal financial secretary, and
sometimes manager. Her help, support,
and encouragement made it easier for Dr. Mel to spend more time in his
professional and community activities.
They achieved the American dream together, working as “Team
Simon”.
While
Dr. Mel was more focused on his work, Lydia was more focused on the home. She was with the three children (Maria
Lucrecia, a dentist in Chicago; Sherwyn, a businessman, and Paul, also a businessman
and running the Simons’ Old Town Farm), managed the
household, paid the bills, took care of the cooking and cleaning, and saw to it
that the house was maintained. A skilled
gardener, Lydia not only surrounded the house with beautiful flowers; she had a
major role in beautifying the grounds of St. Louis Church.
Immigrants such as Mel and Lydia Simon made America. They are the best that their native countries
have to offer. That is their
intelligence, ingenuity, self-confidence, courage, resourcefulness, and spirit
of adventure to take the risk of leaving their countries of birth and adapting
to a new culture and a new system. The
timid, the lazy, and the less able stay home.
Most immigrants are willing to work hard, pursue new paths, and do what
it takes to be successful. They give the
country new blood and fresh ideas; they come to America seeking opportunity and
freedom. Then they work hard to achieve
the American dream and so often find it.
Mel has enjoyed the fruits of his success, but is very
generous with his time and financial resources in giving back so much
to the twin sister communities that gave him the opportunity as well as to his
country of birth that raised him. That's
what makes this prominent physician stand out and led to his being chosen for
the Ohio
Senior Citizens Hall of Fame
in Columbus. Lydia was part of it.
All
of that makes them an example to both the very successful as well as to the
many unknown people who can only contribute in little yet important
ways.......the many little deeds done over many years are also very important
and also add to greatness. Once they had
an empty nest Lydia became more involved directly as well as from behind the
scenes.
Dr.
Mel Simon with his wife Lydia, 60 years at his side.
Dr. Mel and Lydia
exemplify Christian stewardship, which recognizes that everything belongs
to God and comes from Him....... His providential help, one's endowed talents
or gifts, opportunities in life, etc., all of which the individual has little
or no control......that God gives us earthly possessions, property, and
financial resources in trust as stewards to be used responsibly to provide for
our own genuine needs and to serve one's fellow man for the common good of
all.
Greater
wealth entails greater responsibility and God will hold us accountable for the
use of these gifts. In other words, the
gifted have the responsibility to give something back to the community that was
instrumental in their success.
Thus Dr. Mel and Lydia Simon have contributed significantly to
their parish, St. Louis Church, to the University of Rio Grande, and many other
charitable causes. Dr. Mel has given his
time and energy as a member of the Board of Trustees of the University of Rio
Grande (www.rio.edu)
from 1994 to 2014 to assist in its growth and guide it through a severe
financial crisis.
Mel
contributed significantly to the restoration of the historic Ariel Theatre (www.arieltheatre.org)
in 1990, originally built in 1896 as an opera house in the gas light era for
this steamboat stop on the Ohio River.
That led to the birth of the Ohio Valley Symphony Orchestra (http://www.ohiovalleysymphony.org/Board.htm) and his subsequent participation as a member of its Board of
Directors. The current President of the
Ohio Valley Symphony Orchestra Board of Directors is his son, Paul Robert Simon.
In
2009 Dr. Mel and Lydia founded the French 500 Free Clinic to serve uninsured
patients of southeastern Ohio. It was
busy, receiving over 1,200 patients until Obamacare filled that slack.
Operation We Care (http://www.opwecare.org/4.html). As President of the Society of Philippine
Surgeons in America in 1988, he organized an annual medical mission to the
Philippines and in 1999 he strengthened the mission by obtaining the
sponsorship of the Rotary Club while its District 6690 Governor (www.rotary.org).
Usually
every February for over 33 years (1983 to date), Dr. Simon recruits a team of
some 35 doctors and nurses and obtains donations of medical supplies and
equipment to do diverse surgeries for a very intense two weeks.......cleft
palate, some genetic deformities, tumors, eye surgery, dental surgery,
etc. Each participant in the mission
pays his/her own travel expenses. At
the same time the team members train their counterparts in a real people to
people outreach. As a nurse Lydia
accompanies Dr. Mel on every mission and has a very important role. The team members call her “Mission
Mama”.
Next week they'll be going on another mission trip to the Philippines. Dr. Simon has backed off a little at his age, but still does minor surgery as part of a team of 50 doctors and nurses.
From their own resources, Mel and Lydia furnished a 100 bed
surgical ward of the 400 bed Region One Medical Center in Dagupan, Pangasinan
in the northern Philippines. In
gratitude for five years of bringing the medical mission and numerous
donations, it was officially named as the “Dr. Mel & Lydia Simon Surgical
Ward in 2007.
In
addition they helped in the construction of a 30 bed community hospital in
Mangaldan, Pangasinan, where deep water drinking wells were also constructed in
17 surrounding villages through the generosity of Filipino and American Rotary
Clubs. These wells helped to greatly
decrease the incidence of gastro-intestinal diseases and improved the quality
of life. Dr. Mel and Lydia also
initiated nutrition and literacy programs for hundreds of undernourished school
children.
Together
they achieved the American dream and helped to make America great. May God grant Team Simon good health and many
more years to do His work.
APPENDIX  |
Dr. Mel’s Autobiography
The reader may find the above in
much greater detail in Dr. Mel Simon’s autobiography, “Two Rivers: A World Apart”. It can be obtained from www.amazon.com and Bards & Noble. The reader may also borrow the book from the
Bossard Library of Gallipolis, Ohio or from his local library via inter-library
loan. Mel is now working on a second book.
Articles Involving Dr. Mel Simon
(16) Dr. Mel Simon: A Career
Serving God & His People
(90) French 500 Free Clinic (Gallipolis, Ohio)
Celebrates Its Third Anniversary of Operations
(91) Description
of the French Five Hundred Free Clinic in Gallipolis, Ohio
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