Frankie King married her loving husband Royce some 78 years ago. What they had was a love at first sight which lasts until today. Not many people get to spend that much time with their soulmate and the great love of their life, but these two are among the few lucky ones.
Their wedding took place during Royce’s two-day leave from his service at the Air Force. Since they didn’t have much time to organize the special event, Frankie didn’t get to wear a wedding gown and they didn’t hire a wedding photographer.
“He was stationed as a lieutenant in the Air Force… he just got his pilot wings,” their daughter, Sue Bilodeau, told CBS News. “He got a short leave. They had been engaged about six months, so they decided to have a wedding before he was deployed overseas.”
Once the war was over, Royce went back home to the small city of Oelwein, Iowa, and he and his wife welcomed two children. Today, they are being taken care of by a hospice nurse working for St. Croix Hospice.
On what was supposed to be their 77th wedding anniversary, the nurse asked Frankie to see photos of their wedding day. Unfortunately, Frankie didn’t have any because there was no photographer there on their most special day. The nurse then came up with a brilliant idea. She, together with other members of the staff at the hospice, decided to organize a real wedding for this sweet couple. She contacted Frankie and Royce’s daughters who were thrilled with the idea.
The ceremony was a beautiful one. Frankie wore a vintage wedding dress while Royce put on his military uniform, the same one he wore on his wedding day back in the day.
“…It was really sweet and touching, how she looked at herself in the gown. She said, ‘Should I wear my glasses or not? I didn’t have glasses that day.’ And I said, ‘Wear your glasses, you’re beautiful this way,'” the couple’s daughter, Sue, said.
Royce was in anticipation to see his beautiful bride and had a handkerchief held over his eyes for the “first look.” “They said, ‘Are you ready to see your bride?’ and took the blindfold off,” Sue told TODAY. “He had just the biggest smile the rest of the day. It was amazing.”
Everyone who got to attend the wedding was in delight. “How can you not have a sense of overwhelming emotion?” said St. Croix Hospice CEO, Heath Bartness. “The connectivity you almost feel that you were a part of this, and thinking back to what it was like in World War II the first time, and how meaningful and how emotional this second opportunity to do this was. There’s an overwhelming sense of pride in not just the company and what the organization did, but more so just as an act of humanity.”
It truly was a day to remember. Happy anniversary and many more to come, Frankie and Royce.
