These high school sweethearts were separated for almost 7 decades and they reunited during the pandemic and got married.
Their love story is a long one, i.e. it begun 68 years ago. This is when Fred Paul and Florence Harvey met for the first time.
This was during their teen years when both lived in Wandsworth, a small Newfoundland and Labrador province town in Canada. They were spending a lot of time together walking after church, kissing in between classes, and going to concerts.
A Beautiful Love Story which Took a Different Turn
For the two years they spent together, Paul always flickered his porch light before bed. It was his way of telling Florence good night and ‘I love you’. She lived across the bay.
Fred, who’s now 84, explained that she was his first true love and his first girlfriend.
However, when Fred turned 18 and Florence was 15, they took different ways. He moved to Toronto to work and a year later, although he came back to the city to look for Florence, she had already moved to another town.
As the time went by, both married different people and started their families. However, in 2017, Florence was single again. Her husband Len died from cancer.
They were married for 57 years and had 5 children together.
Sadly, 2 years later, the wife of Paul, Helen, died from several health issues, including dementia. The couple was together for more than 60 years and had 2 children.
Fred and Florence had a shared grief over losing their partners and this seemed to be what brought them back together.
Fred & Florence Rekindle the Old Flame
When Florence heard that the wife of Paul died, she called him to tell him that things will slowly improve. This talk, which happened one day after Valentine’s Day, also included topics like their children and grandchildren and remembering their happy memories together.
Florence who’s 81, said that she never thought things will go further than this. However, they were soon talking twice to three times per week. Then, it became every day for long hours.
They really reconnected and although they haven’t seen each other for very long, they say they knew this was it.
Several months later, on Fred’s birthday in July, Florence came to Toronto to visit him. Fred explains that when he found out she came to his town to see him; he ran out of bed in 10:30 am and got dressed up.
He wrote ‘welcome Florence’ in chalk on the driveway. The next morning, when she arrived, he walked to the car and hugged and kissed her.
He held her hand and knew she had already taken his heart.
Fred & Florence Decide to Spend the Rest of their Lives Together
Three days later, they decided to get married. Their families wondered why they moved that fast; however, they said they had no doubts that they want to spend the rest of their lives with each other.
Fred was scheduled to undergo treatment for stomach cancer and Florence said she is committed to be with him in the good and in the bad, regardless of what it will involve.
The most Beautiful Wedding Ceremony
In August, Florence and Fred exchanged their vows surrounded by their family and closest friends. The ceremony happened in the Norval United Church in Georgetown, Ontario.
The guest list was pretty small because of the pandemic. With all the wisdom and experience the two collected through their lives, they’re willing to say their vows again and it’s so powerful.
Many of the guests had tears of joy, watching this unimaginable love story unfold.
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