"Never in a million years did I think that I would find myself, at the age of 72, in love and happier than I have been in a long time," exclaims Nancy.
Nancy spent ten years alone after her husband died, and her children noticed how lonely she'd become. They encouraged her to seek companionship. In December 2020, she took the plunge and created a CatholicMatch profile, uploading her best photo and hoping to find a man with a good sense of humor who could make her laugh.
"I felt nervous and wondered if there was someone—anyone—who would like me," she reveals. "Looking at profiles, the guys seemed older than I expected, and many did not have photos."
Rob, on the other hand…
Nancy kept returning to a particular profile of a member named Rob, 80. Reviewing what he wrote about himself, she noticed he was well-educated and loved God and his Catholic faith—plus, he attended daily Mass regularly. Nancy also appreciated that Rob enjoyed football and eating out, two things she liked.
She adds, "One other thing that really impressed me about Rob was his devotion to his late wife, but it also made me wonder if he could to move on. I thought perhaps, at the very least, he could talk about her to me, and that would help him heal in his grief. [Rob's wife died only a year prior to meeting Nancy.]"
Nancy made the first move…
Nancy stopped second-guessing herself, and she reached out to Rob. "I did it! I sent Rob a message, and he surprised me when he wrote back," she laughs.
Rob says he wanted a partner that could help him strengthen his faith, and Nancy seemed to fit the bill. Their conversation took off, and they began texting back and forth all day. Those texts turned into phone calls.
"Rob has a quick wit, a great sense of humor, and an awesome voice. I could listen to him all day," Nancy opines.
She had so many qualities that he liked.
Rob liked Nancy's integrity, wisdom, and honesty. He also found Nancy relatable and humble. "There's not a pretentious bone in her body," says the widower. "What you see is what you get, and that is a beautiful person in every way."
The two were getting along so well over the phone that they decided to meet each other in person in January 2021—after only two weeks—despite all the COVID restrictions.
Even though Rob felt excited to meet Nancy in person, he worried that she might feel disappointed in him. "I couldn't have been more wrong," he laughs.
The smile in his eyes said it all...
Like Rob, Nancy thought she might disappoint him, or the meeting would fall flat. "But then all that went away when I opened the door," she recalls.
She saw the smile in Rob's eyes, and the words "Oh, yes!" slipped out of his mouth.
"We both were so pleased with our first meeting that we knew we had to explore and develop the relationship and do so one day at a time," they share.
They felt comfortable sharing their past lives.
"Our conversations got deeper, more far-reaching, and we learned more and more about how well we fit as a couple," Nancy reveals.
However, since both Nancy and Rob were widows, they didn't know what challenges their previous marriage would bring to our relationship.
Nancy had a complicated history because she had two marriages before meeting Rob on CatholicMatch. Her first marriage, lasting 11 years and producing three children, was annulled. She remarried soon after, and the second marriage produced one son. After 29 years, her husband died.
"I was widowed for over 10 years, had a busy life, and I didn't feel interested in dating for a long time," she shares.
Rob had a 50-year marriage and had three children (twin boy and girl and another daughter). His marriage ended when his wife succumbed to cancer after a year and a half battle.
"During the long caregiving period and following her death, I felt very lonely like I was just going through the motions," he shares.
Rob went on CatholicMatch more out of curiosity than anything else, contacting a few women, but none seemed interesting until he received a message from Nancy.
They didn't want to waste time!
The pace of Rob and Nancy's relationship moved quickly partly because they didn't feel like they had time considering their ages: 81 and 72. "Time was a luxury we could not afford," she says. "This led to an increase in the pace of the relationship."
On March 3, 2021, the couple became unofficially engaged over lunch, and then two weeks later, Rob formally proposed once he had the ring in hand. On March 20th, they were at Rob's house getting ready to go to our bishop's pro-life dinner. Rob got down on one knee to present the ring.
"He needed my help to get up again! Being 81 years and having arthritis will do that to you," she laughs.
Love has no age limit!
On July 10, 2021, Rob and Nancy's joined their lives in Holy Matrimony at St. John Nepomucene, in Ennis, Texas. They enjoyed a small wedding only their children and grandchildren attended. The couple's priest told them they were the oldest couple he'd ever married!
No matter their ages, Nancy and Rob had found true love. "For me, Nancy, it is like living a dream," Rob shares.
Nancy closes, "Rob is amazing and treats me like, and refers to me as, "his treasure;" but in reality, it is what we are to each other."
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