Source: The Oregonian
On July 20, 2003 The Oregonian reported that "On a Friday night in Southeast Portland, 100 people gather in a Zen Buddhist zendo, or meditation hall [to celebrate an anniversary]. Eric Marcoux, a Tibetan Buddhist teacher... and his partner of 50 years, Eugene Woodworth, have lived through a lot of history: the 1950s with their crackdown on 'deviant sexuality,' the sexual '60s, the gay rights action of the '70s and '80s, the AIDS crisis, the legal changes and ongoing challenges of antigay-rights measures. But they don't see themselves as witnesses of history, but as two hearts that connected long ago and have lived together ever since... The Zen priest welcomes the men and women who have come from many corners of this couple's life. They've come to hear them repeat the same vows they have made to each other the first Tuesday of every month of the past 50 years. Over those years, the language of the vows has changed from Christian terms to Buddhist ones."