THE LIFE & TIMES OF CHICK AND DARLENE KOSKI
A love story sixty years (and counting) in the making
Happy anniversary!
Technically, this story starts sixty years ago, although the seeds for it were planted long before then. It starts in the aftermath of Marquette's Great Snowstorm of 1938, when a boy named Walter James Koski was born--
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| Chick, age one |
He was the first son of Agnes Hogan of Marquette, and was raised in the family home on the top of the Jackson Street hill by his grandparents, James and Beda Hogan, and a whole slew of aunts and uncles.
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| Agnes and then husband John Koski holding the young Chick. |
Needless to say, Chick led a rather interesting life as a youngster.
Meanwhile, on the other side of Marquette, a young girl was born to this handsome couple--
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| Darlene's parents Dorothy and Frank Schwemin. |
Her name was Darlene May Schwemin, and like all girls of the 1940s she enjoyed things like dancing and swimming.
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| Darlene, age 4. |
As they grew, they didn't know each other; living in separate parts of the city meant they went to different schools. However, as fate would have it, they ended up at the same high school in Marquette, Bishop Baraga High School. They didn't attend classes together, as Darlene was two years behind Chick and they each had a different area of study,
When Darlene was a freshman and Chick a junior, they finally crossed paths, not at school but at a dance at the old Palestra ice arena in Marquette. From then on, they were inseparable.
Well, maybe not totally inseparable, as Chick served a stint in the National Guard at Fort Leonard Wood in Missouri--
With friends like John & Elaine VandeZande and Tony & Judy DePetro by their sides, they took the plunge on a nice September afternoon--
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| The beautiful bride |
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| Chick's mother Agnes, Darlene's parents Frank and Dorothy, and the newlyweds. |
The happy couple settled into married life, with Chick working at Olson Motors, the Ford dealership in Marquette, and Darlene working in the office of Dr. Cooperstock, a local pediatrician.
Like all young couples of the day, they soon found their family expanding, starting with the arrival of son Jim
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| Chick,saying "hello" to his firstborn and perhaps wondering who this strange little being was. Little did he know... |
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| Darlene and the son who took 10 months (instead of the usual 9) to be born. |
And, a year and a half later, daughter Karrie-
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| Karrie, at "camp" on Big Shag Lake south of Gwinn |
The family made their home in a small house on the edge of the old Schwemin family farm in Marquette Township (approximately where the driveway to the Walmart Auto Center now sits), and spent the next few years as a family there.
The next big move for the family was to a brand-new house built by Chick and his father-in-law Frank in the middle of Marquette. Located on Norway Avenue, just a few blocks from the Whitman Elementary School, the house featured more rooms, a basement, and a back yard big enough to flood into an ice rink.
Still, even with all the demands of family, Darlene and Chick made sure they found the time to celebrate the fact that they were still a couple.
The next big move for the family was to a brand-new house built by Chick and his father-in-law Frank in the middle of Marquette. Located on Norway Avenue, just a few blocks from the Whitman Elementary School, the house featured more rooms, a basement, and a back yard big enough to flood into an ice rink.
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| Karrie & Jim during one of the first Christmases at the Norway house. |
Chick, meanwhile, was moving up in his career at Olson Motors, first becoming the service manager, and then the body shop manager--
Darlene and Chick enjoyed traveling, taking Jim & Karrie down to Texas to see Chick's mother and to Minnesota to see his brother. Chick's continuing good work at Olson Motors eventually allowed the couple a big vacation to Hawaii.
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| Pick out the person in this picture who MAY have had a few too many of those little bottles of liquor they used to give out on airplanes. |
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| Chick & Darlene in Hawaii, being waited on by someone who looks suspiciously like Tony Danza. |
As it turns out, the move to the Norway house was a good one, as the family added another member with the arrival of daughter Melanie--
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| Mel, 6 hours old |
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| Christmas, 1970. |
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| Melanie the fashion model |
However, the family wasn't quite yet done growing, as there was one more child waiting in the wings. Marc made his arrival at the end of 1972, and soon Chick & Darlene's brood was complete.
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| Marc in his natural state, making a mess. |
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| Marc once again in his natural state, making yet another mess. |
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| Marc, Melanie, and Jim, proving that the early 70s were quite a strange time for fashion. |
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| Christmas, 1972. |
With a growing family, the Norway Street house was soon bursting at the seams. So once again with the help of Frank, Chick built his second house, near the Marquette Golf & Country Club on the aptly named Fairway Drive. They would live there for the next 35 years.
Here's a picture of the happy couple shortly after moving in, probably happy because construction is finally finished
In 1975, Chick & Darlene took a big step. Chick quit his job at Olson Motors and the two of them opened their own auto repair facility, Koski's Collision, on another edge of the old Schwemin family farm in Marquette Township. That was soon joined by another business venture, Metric Motors, which sold parts and provided service for European & sports cars. That was folded into "The Shop", as it was known, and gave them a little business empire that they ruled over for the next two decades.
As the decade moved on the family started to grow up, and as the next decade started Karrie and Todd Lafayette were married,
As the decade moved on the family started to grow up, and as the next decade started Karrie and Todd Lafayette were married,
Soon Darlene and Chick had their first two Grandchildren. Denielle was born later that year...
While her brother Nick followed two years later.
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| Darlene holding young Nick. Her sister Barbara is sitting next to her. |
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| The happy couple, early 1980s |
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| The four Koski kids, 1982 or 1983. |
In 1984, the happy couple celebrated their 25th wedding anniversary, complete with cutting of the cake.
And a toast from Darlene's father Frank--
Right around that time, Darlene and Chick developed another hobby--camping.
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| You may not want to ask the meaning behind the saying on those shirts. |
Together with a group of friends, they spent most summer weekends at campgrounds throughout Michigan. They instilled a love of the outdoors in Marc and Melanie, and provided many fond memories for their two youngest children. One memory that may stick with the two the most, though, would be the legendary "Peach Schnapps Incident"--
The above picture is not necessarily from the so-called "Peach Schnapps Incident", but may be somewhat indicative of what happened that fateful night. Ask Melanie if you'd like more details.
As the 80s wore on, Melanie graduated from high school and Jim, working in Flint, met a girl named Loraine. They moved back to Marquette in 1988, and a year later spent a little time on the steps of the Marquette County Courthouse--
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| For those keeping score at home, from left to right you see Marc, Karrie, Nick, Loraine, Jim, Darlene, Chick, Denielle, Melanie, and Dorothy. |
That site would prove to be a popular wedding location for other Koski family members. In 1991 another grandchild entered Chick & Darlene's life, this being Melanie's first daughter, Courtney--
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| Courtney, who for some reason wasn't happy at her first birthday party. |
Courtney lived with her mom & Chick and Darlene for the the first few years of her life, and soon became the apple of grandma & grandpa's eye.
In the mid 1990s, after 20 years of ownership, Darlene and Chick decided to sell Koski's Collision and enjoy an early retirement. The shop went to Karrie's (then) husband Todd, who renamed it Lafayette Collision, where it's still being run by Todd and Nick. Early retirement didn't necessarily stick, as Chick became a certified furniture installer and Darlene a bookkeeper, but it did allow them the opportunity to travel and spend time with their family
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| The happy couple, mid 1990s. |
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| Mallory |
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| Sydney |
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| The original motorhome |
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| The permanent home on the corner lot |
In Florida they developed a whole new set of friends and a whole new set of hobbies, Chick as a community-champion tennis & pickleball player, while Darlene cultivated a talent as a watercolorist--
Here, in fact, is the finished version of the painting she's working on
If you'd like, you can see more of her work on her website by clicking here.
As the 21st century wore on, so did their enduring love for one another, even through such scandals as Chick's "I Wanna Look Like Santa Claus" phase--
Don't worry; he's cleaned up for this picture-
In the middle part of the 00s' Chick & Darlene became great-grandparents, as both Denielle and Nick began families of their own. Nick's son Caden is pictured here with Denielle's son Austin--
In the middle part of the 00s' Chick & Darlene became great-grandparents, as both Denielle and Nick began families of their own. Nick's son Caden is pictured here with Denielle's son Austin--
Here's Nick's whole family, including wife Jen and daughter Olivia--
While in this picture Austin is joined by his sister Taylor--
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| Sydney, Jim, & Mallory |
The celebrations included a very important one in 2009, when the happy couple celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary, members of their wedding party included--
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| Chick, Darlene, Elaine VandeZande, Judy & Tony DePetro |
However, the family was STILL not yet done growing. In the middle of the teens Marc finally met the girl of his dreams, Tiffanie, and together they gave Chick & Darlene two more grandsons, the first being Abel--
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| Marc, Abel, & Tiffanie |
And the second being Calum, born in 2019.
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| Calum & grandma |
As we celebrate Darlene & Chick's sixty years of wedding bliss, we should also touch on the remarkable friendships that have endured for those six decades, including their life-spanning relationship with Tony & Judy DePetro
As the years have moved on, Chick & Darlene's kids (and grand kids) have grown into families and lives of their own, proof positive of the lasting legacy that began when they said "I Do" on September 19th, 1959.
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| Marc, Jim, Melanie |
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| Courtney, Mallory, Sydney |
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| Aunt Courtney, Abel, and "Uncle" Guiseppe |
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| Caden, Darlene, Nick |
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| Chick & Abel |
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| Darlene, Courtney,Melanie,Marc, Chick |
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| Marc and his very photogenic father |
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| Darlene, Loraine, and Chick |
What's next for Chicky-poo and Dar? Well, time will tell. But the one thing that I think pretty much everyone will agree on is that whatever comes their way, it'll be imbued with adventure, a few laughs, Darlene yelling "Chick" as loud as humanly possible to get his attention, and as much love as two amazing human beings can generate.
And trust us. That is a LOT of love.
Happy anniversary, Mom & Dad!!!!!
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