It was the summer of '45, and against a backdrop of the Japanese surrender, Salvatore Spano and Faye Brewer shared ice cream cones and dreams for the future while strolling along Lake Chautauqua in upstate New York.

Both participants in the famous Chautauqua Institution, he for oboe and she for voice, they found time between practice sessions, rehearsals, and performances to fall in love.

Salvatore (Sal or Sahl) and Faye corresponded for another year--he from his musical education studies at USC and she from her hometown of Wooster, Ohio--and in the summer of '46, Faye said good-bye to her family and friends and courageously flew across the country to join Sal in Los Angeles.

Their courtship lasted until Sal's future career was set, and they married the same month that he graduated from USC inJanuary 1948.

Sal's teaching career spanned 37 years, from his early days at Samuel Gompers Junior High in South Central L.A. University High School in West L.A., teaching instrumental music and music appreciation, and ultimately concluding at L.A. City College as a professor of music theory and instrumental music and author of a music theory textbook.

His professional career as an oboist, and life member of the Musician's Union Local 47, kept him playing from San Diego to L.A. to Bakersfield to Las Vegas, and even Anchorage, Alaska.

In addition, he enriched the lives of tens of hundreds of burgeoning oboe players of all ages through private lessons.

In January of '52--along with their first-born daughter, Saundra--Sal and Faye moved into their brand-new dream home in the Valley, across the street from Sherman Oaks Elementary School.

Daughter Cynthia (Cindy) was born soon after. Faye was the homemaker, the nurturer, the rock, who held everyone and everything together.

She continued to use her vocal talent in local church choirs and various vocal ensembles in throughout the city. The girls crossed the street to school every day, even coming home for lunch with mommy.

Seasons and times change, and eventually, against the turbulent backdrop of strikes and protests, Saundra and Cindy graduated from Van Nuys High School in the classes of '69 and '71, respectively, to follow their own dreams and form their own loving relationships.

Sherman Oaks remains home to Sal and Faye, who still stroll hand-in-hand through the neighborhood and along Ventura Boulevard, reflecting on the changes around them, sharing contentment in their present, and remaining secure in their future.

According to Sal, "Life is beautiful when you're still in love, even after 60 years."