An elderly man’s wife may have been in isolation against the coronavirus, but this senior Romeo still managed to call his Juliet from beneath her second-story nursing home window to mark a very special occasion. It was the couple’s 67th wedding anniversary, and the doting husband was determined to serenade his wife, come what may.
Bob and Nancy Shellard have never spent a wedding anniversary separately. On March 14, 2020, the day of their anniversary, Bob devised a way to bring his beloved a message, even under unconventional circumstances.
Bob stood on the lawn outside the Stafford Springs nursing home in Vernon, Connecticut, brandishing colorful balloons and a homemade sign that read, “I’ve loved you 67 years and still do. Happy Anniversary,” according to media reports.
Bob’s desire to ensure that his wife felt acknowledged on their anniversary, despite their enforced separation, was successful. Nancy waved and blew kisses from the window, later telling nursing home staff that she felt “like a queen.”
The Shellards’ is a long and happy marriage that continues to inspire their four children. Laura Mikolajczak, one of the Shellards’ children, said that this happened to be the first anniversary that her parents have ever been apart. She said that before the ban, her father came to visit her mother every day.
Regardless of the trials and tribulations that befall them, however, Laura said that her mother is always smiling and called her elderly parents “an inspiration.” Laura said her parents continue to acknowledge their anniversary and express their mutual love every single year even after almost seven decades of marriage.
“There’s just a sweetness to the two of them and what they share,” Laura told WVIT. “It’s just been an example for us, for all of us kids.”
“I can only hope,” she added, “that I have half as much as what they have shared over the years.”
The Shellards married when they were both in their early twenties, according to a report by News 8.
“Nothing’s changed as far as how much I love her,” Bob said in the report, “and I want her to know about it. The only trouble doing it now is the fact that she’s lost so much memory, though she remembers me when I go up there.”
On their wedding anniversary, Nancy’s eyes lit up with recognition, and the decades-long connection between the two lovebirds was plain for all to see. While Bob acknowledged that it could be some time before he is reunited with his wife, he hopes it won’t be long before they are together again.
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