For 39 joyful minutes, a parade of family members, neighbors, friends and well-wishers streamed by as Barbara and Bill Birnie watched from their Balboa Island cottage.
In cars and golf carts, on bikes or by foot, the revelers sang and danced, threw confetti and blew kisses to the beaming couple. At final count, nearly 100 people — and a dozen dogs — helped the Birnies celebrate an impressive milestone in late June: their 70th year of marriage.
“The number of friends they still have and who rallied for this offbeat occasion is indicative of the fabulous way that my parents have lived their lives,” says daughter Diane Birnie Bock ’79. “They both grew up in Southern California and have thrived throughout their long lives by being friendly, helpful and generous. And USC was a fantastic place for both of them.”