Mike and Corinne Musselman said faith formed the foundation of their 64-year marriage from the earliest days of the relationship.
“We began dating after graduating from Zanesville Bishop Rosecrans High School in 1958, but neither of us had much money,” Corinne said. “The one thing we did do every Friday night was attend the Sorrowful Mother novena at Zanesville St. Nicholas Church together. We wanted Mary to bless our relationship, and she surely has, for here we are still together.”
“There’s no question that our Catholic faith and sharing the same values, goals and priorities have been responsible for our long marriage,” Mike said. “We’ve tried to do everything together, especially in the last 20 years or so since I retired as a machinist with Zanesville Mold (later Anchor Glass Container).
“I worked different shifts there as a machinist for 44 ½ years, so Corinne had to do most of the raising of our six children. After retirement, we were able to do many of the things we hadn’t been able to because of my work.” That includes attending Mass nearly every day, either at St. Nicholas Church or via the EWTN network’s televised Mass.
“We’ve always told couples that what will keep them together beyond their initial attraction to each other – what’s kept us together – is that we have shared values, and we talk about them,” Mike said.
“You’ve always got to talk things out,” Corinne said. “There’s no such thing as a perfect marriage, and any problem will reveal itself in time, so don’t try to ignore it when a problem first comes up. ‘Never go to bed angry with each other’ is an old saying, but it’s sound advice.”
The Musselmans, both 82, have six children – sons Mark, 63; Matthew, 56 and Luke, 54; and daughters Denise, 60; Renie, 59 and Theresa, 57. They also have 20 grandchildren and recently added an 11th great-grandchild.
“That’s a large family by today’s standards, but Corinne is the youngest of eight children, and I’m the oldest of 12,” Mike said. “We were only blessed with six. Both of our families tend to be long-lived. My mom died about a year ago at age 103, and Corinne’s dad was nearly 100 when he died.”
Mike Musselman and Corinne Soller knew each other throughout high school. “She was a cheerleader, and I played football, basketball and baseball and ran track,” Mike said.
“We were acquainted with each other all that time, but we never dated until after taking a senior class trip to New York City and Washington. We went on a dinner cruise one night along the Potomac River in Washington., I asked her to dance, and things just took off from there.
“We started talking and realized we had a lot in common. Once we got back, we became engaged on July 15 and were married on Nov. 8 at St. Nicholas.” The officiating priest was Mike’s uncle, Father Camillus Musselman, OP. Assisting was Father Linus Dury, the parish’s pastor from 1951 until his death in 1976.
“I came from a farm background and enjoyed growing up in what probably was the largest fruit farm in Muskingum County,” Corinne said.
“I lived on a 100-acre piece of property, but my dad was not a farmer. He grew children instead of crops,” Mike said. “He worked for Zanesville Mold, and that’s where I worked right out of high school and stayed until retirement. Two of my brothers also retired from the company. I was making $1 an hour when I started, and that was good money.”
Corinne stayed home and raised the couple’s children, then worked in the late 1970s and early 1980s as manager of the Rosecrans cafeteria. She also provided child care for a couple for several years.
“She raised the family while I was working odd shifts and a lot of 12-hour days,” Mike said. “I know I missed out on a lot, and I wish I had more time with them, but by working as I did, we were able to put the kids through college.
“My mom was a remarkable story in her own right. She was orphaned at 4 months old in 1918 because of the Spanish flu. Her father couldn’t support her because he was injured in an industrial accident. She got her education at St. Ann’s Orphanage in Columbus and the St. Aloysius Academy boarding school in New Lexington, and she ended up marrying my dad and raising all 12 of us brothers and sisters. Her mind was perfect until the end of her life, and she never had to leave home.”
The Musselmans’ oldest son, Mark, was diagnosed with muscular dystrophy in 1980 when he was 20 years old. “It’s a challenge, but he didn’t let that stop him,” Mike said. “He married, learned to drive and has lived a full life. He’s a good, devout Catholic man, and seeing him deal with his situation has made us better Catholics. He’s the rock in our family.”
Mike said that when the couple’s son Matthew worked at Guardian Angels School in Cincinnati, he knew Columbus Bishiop Earl Fernandes, who arrived in Columbus earlier this year from the Queen City. Mike, Corinne and Matt recently attended the Columbus diocesan Senior Citizens Day luncheon at which the bishop spoke, and Mike said the bishop immediately recognized Matt, even though the two hadn’t seen each other for some time. “That impressed me right away,” Mike said . “I think Bishop Fernandes is going to be a wonderful bishop.”
The Musselmans have served their parish and the community in many ways. They were involved for more than 20 years with their parish’s pre-Cana program for engaged couples, and Mike taught religious education to high school students for several years.
They also helped form the Muskingum Valley Right to Life Society and have worked with the Heartbeats pregnancy health center in Zanesville. They helped restore a house in Slidell, Louisiana in the wake of Hurricane Katrina in 2005 and have returned there every year since. In addition, they went with young people to summer work camps in several areas and have been part of the Cursillo and Marriage Encounter movements.
In September, they were in eastern Kentucky to assist Sister Marge Eilerman,. OSF, who is stationed there and was assisting victims of devastating floods in the region. Sister Marge is an aunt of Father Craig Eilerman, pastor of Lancaster St. Mary Basilica .
The couple went on a pilgrimage to Rome in 2002 after Mike’s retirement and traveled to Lourdes and Fatima in 2018 with a group led by Father Eilerman and Father Jan Sullivan, pastor of Zanesville St. Thomas Aquinas Church.
“We’re starting to slow down a little,” Mike said. “Corinne’s had a knee replacement and is dealing with spinal stenosis. I’ve been pretty blessed so far because I haven’t had any major health issues.
“We’ve lived a full life. We used to live in the country but now live just east of Zanesville, 10 minutes from church and right by an Interstate 70 exit. We don’t know what the future holds, but that doesn’t really matter. We’ll continue to serve the Lord in the best way we can for as long as we’re able.”
