WHEN Douglas and Belinda Cole decided to celebrate their diamond wedding anniversary they had a rather unusual request from their guests.They asked for cash donations instead of presents so that they could thank the charities that helped Douglas recover from major heart surgery.

WHEN Douglas and Belinda Cole decided to celebrate their diamond wedding anniversary they had a rather unusual request from their guests.

They asked for cash donations instead of presents so that they could thank the charities that helped Douglas recover from major heart surgery.

"If it was not for Zipper and Heartbeat I may not be here and I may not have made it to our diamond celebration. I had bypass surgery back in 1994 and these charities look after you. You automatically become a member of Zipper when you have had the surgery and heartbeat are always there when you come out of hospital. If you need help you can just contact them," said the 79-year-old.

"We would just like to thank them for all they have done and also thank all our friends and family for supporting us and making the donations," he added.

The childhood sweethearts, who now live in Dale Hall Lane, Ipswich, met when they were just five years old back in 1927. They married on February 6 1942 and have been inseparable ever since.

They celebrated their anniversary with a big party at the Manor Ballroom in Ipswich.