Maryland Community Newspapers Online
Laurel resident Ernest Runge was married to Norma Markstrom of Grand Junction, Colo., on May 25 at the Grand Junction Seventh-day Adventist Church,
Markstrom is the widow of longtime physician Carl Markstrom, who retired in Grand Junction. The groom is an ordained minister of the Seventh-day Adventist denomination.
A reception for the newlyweds was hosted at the Intermountain Adventist Academy Grand Junction, adjacent to the church. The ceremony was performed by a longtime friend of the couple, Don A. Roth, of Yucaipa, Calif.
Markstrom's two daughters, Brenda Hart and Debbie Pessin, and their families attended the event as did the three grown daughters of the groom, Kathy, Pamela and Vicki. The wedding prayer was given by the Grand Junction Adventist church pastor, Randy Mills.
The bride is a native of New York City, but spent most of her life in Texas. The groom is a native of Watertown, Wis., who spent part of his professional life in overseas mission service in Beirut, Lebanon. Although retired from active ministry, Runge continues to consult churches on special construction projects.
Violinist Joy Owenby and pianist/organist Lane Cross played music at the service, which was attended by out-of-state guests from California, Maryland, Florida and Texas.
After the ceremony, the newlyweds drove to Los Angeles, where they boarded a cruise ship for a honeymoon trip to Vancouver, British Columbia.
