More than 150 couples renew vows at Naper Settlement's Century Memorial Chapel 50th anniversary celebration

NAPERVILLE, Ill. (WLS) -- Love is definitely in the air!

The Naper Settlement celebrated their 50th anniversary by giving 158 couples a vow renewal ceremony at Memorial Chapel in Naperville Sunday.

All 158 couples that participated in the vow renewal were originally married at the property as well.

The anniversary commemorates a group of volunteers who banded together to rescue a local church, St. John's Episcopal Church, from demolition in 1969.

The group, now known as the Naperville Heritage Society, saved and relocated the building to the grounds surrounding the museum as the Martin Mitchell Mansion. More buildings followed suit, creating the museum Naper Settlement.

The ceremony was led by longtime museum partner Rent-A-Rev Jim Rehnberg, who originally wed many of the couples in attendance.

Their love stories and wedding photos will become artifacts in the museum's more than 80,000-piece collection.

The longest married couple in attendance was Peter and Nancy Yonker-who were originally married in 1972.