Jim and I went together for a long time, because we knew each other when we were 14 and fell in love when were about 16. You see, we went to school together, and that’s how we met. It was the Solebury School in New Hope, Pennsylvania.

It was such a dragged-out proposal! The first time he said it laughingly at the age of 15. He was inviting me to go to the movies, and he said, “Well, I’ll marry you someday, I think.” And I said, “Sure you will!”

The next time was when we were 18 and seniors. At the prom he felt very romantic and he said, “Well, someday we’ll get married.” And by the time I was 19 or 20, I was saying, “When? When? When are we going to get married?”

I’ll never forget the day he actually gave me my ring. We were at the home of his mother, Helen Hayes, on Mother’s Day. It’s a beautiful house at Nyack on the Hudson River. We were having breakfast when he said, “Come upstairs a minute. I’m going to show you something.” I went upstairs not knowing what he had on his mind. He showed me the ring and said, “You’re going to be my Mother’s Day present to my mother!” And that was the day we really got engaged.