Ernest and Blanche Thornley were married on October 20, 1945, at Holy Trinity Church in Greymouth, the town where Mrs Thornley was born.
Mrs Thornley (91) said there was no real secret to reaching 70 years of marriage, but communication certainly helped.
''You wonder why I stuck around for 70 years,'' she joked.
''But we fit in pretty well.''
Mr Thornley (94) was equally as jovial when the question was put to him.
''One thing that kept us going was, when you started throwing things, you kept your head down,'' he said, laughing.
The happy couple received a card from Prime Minister John Key, a visit from Dunedin South MP Clare Curran, a letter from Associate Health Minister Peter Dunne and a table full of congratulatory flowers.
The pair met while in the army at Burnham, where 21-year-old Blanche Blackman worked in the office headquarters and Mr Thornley, then 24, was a soldier.
It was not quite love at first sight, Mr Thornley recalled, but more being in the right place at the right time.
''[I was happy] she chose me out of thousands of soldiers,'' he said.
The couple had been in Dunedin for all but six years of their marriage and lived for 50 years in Prince Albert Rd, St Kilda. Along the way, there have been five children, eight grandchildren and seven great-grandchildren.
They will celebrate the milestone with about 16 friends and family members on Sunday.
