Married for 80 Years, This Couple Still Shares the Sweetest Breakfast Tradition
A centenarian couple in Tennessee has maintained a breakfast tradition for 50 years. Every Friday, they meet their friends at McDonald's and eat an egg McMuffin with sausage. And at their respective ages of 101 and 100, John and Jerry Carroll aren’t quitting their tradition anytime soon.
Centenarian Couple Has Been Having the Same Breakfast Date for Decades
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If their ages weren’t milestones enough, the centenarian couple celebrated their 80th anniversary in April of this year. The two enjoy a quiet life in Murfreesboro, Tennessee, in a home that they built. They’ve lived there since the city was mostly farmland, before it was a busy suburb bordering Nashville.
“We just love them,” said Christina Crisp, the general manager at their local McDonald's. “They’ve been here for a long time.”
To keep in shape at his age, John touches his toes 200 times early every morning.
The Couple Has Built a Beautiful Family Legacy
His secret to a long, happy marriage is “treat your wife nice" and “try to help her in all you can and work hard,” he added. “That’s all. We’ve had our ups and downs over the years, but we still made it.”
The couple has 3 children, 7 grandchildren, 21 great-grandchildren, and 1 great-great-grandbaby.
WWII Veteran John Carroll Shares His Story for Future Generations
John is also a WWII veteran. He was drafted at 19 and served for three years while being engaged to Jerry all the while. He recently sat down with an oral historian from the Gary Sinise Foundation to tell his own war history. His stories are now a part of the National World War II Museum's archives in New Orleans.
He told the historian that his batch was among the first to receive the 120-millimeter anti-aircraft gun, a significant improvement over the 90-millimeter guns.
It’s wonderful that this couple has loved each other so dearly for eight decades. Hopefully, their McDonald's dates continue for many more years to come.
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"However, each one of you also must love his wife as he loves himself, and the wife must respect her husband." - Ephesians 5:33
WATCH: Married for 80 Years, This Couple Still Shares the Sweetest Breakfast Tradition
LISTEN: After 50 Years of Teaching, She Said Goodbye to Students | High School Throws Their 90-Year-Old Well-Loved Janitor a Birthday Party
h/t: WLBT
Featured Image Credit: YouTube/CBS19
Michaela Gordoni is an avid reader and part-time globe-trotter. With a bachelor's degree in International Relations and experience in the non-profit world, she has a passion for people and reporting. You can check out her portfolio here.
Originally published August 12, 2026.
