The Windsor chapter of the Barber Shop Harmony Society was busy Thursday as it tried to meet demand for singing Valentines.

The Merry-Matics Quartet, one of three quartets working on Thursday, surprised Margaret Kissau at a local coffee shop early in the day.

It was one of more than 50 performances quartets across Windsor-Essex had planned between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m.

The Merry-Matics Quartet sings to men and woman, wives and fiancées, and anyone who simply needs a pick-me-up.

"Anybody who calls in and wanted to give a gift to their wife or sweetheart," said Doren McTaggart, who sings baritone.

Nothing beats the surprised looks he encounters, said McTaggart.

"It's fun when you go into a factory and they turn down the machinery and you sing to a guy, and then all the guys want you to go sing for their wives," he said.

McTaggart's been in the quartet for seven years.

"It keeps us going and people enjoy," he said. "It's the smiles on the people's faces."

Kissau said she was speechless.

"It was a very nice surprise by my husband," she said.

"It's a happy time. They're going to remember this one," McTaggart said. "It's not as expensive as a ring, it's cheaper than dinner and it's less calories than chocolate."