Founding members of the Hackney Seventh-Day Adventist Church have just celebrated a golden 50 years of marriage.

Hackney Gazette: Curtis and Marguerita Bruce with their familyCurtis and Marguerita Bruce with their family (Image: Archant)

Curtis and Marguerita Bruce originally moved to Hackney from St Lucia in the 1960s along with other Caribbean families.

Mr Bruce was Hackney’s very first “head elder” in the late 1970s at the church whose building he helped secure in Scriven Street, Haggerston.

Former pastor Ellis Guthrie, who returned on Saturday to offer his congratulations to the pair on their marriage milestone, said: “The Bruces continue to leave a legacy for other married couples and young people to emulate.

“They have been together for many years and during those years have also served the Church well.

“They are an inspiration with a positive influence on those who form the current membership of the Hackney Seventh-Day Adventist Church. We are thankful to God for their lives together along with their ministry.”