Second Time Around: Love Stories That Blossom After Decades Apart
“Believe it or not, we’re in love at our age. I want his hugs and kisses and he feels the same way. It’s just like when we were teenagers.” These are the words of Joanne Blakkan. The 92-year-old recently reconnected with her high-school sweetheart Bill Hassinger more than 70 years after they had gone their separate ways. And the loved-up nonagenarians are a prime example of how when it comes to romance, age ain’t nothing but a number.
Levels of oxytocin
Finding love later in life can have all kinds of beneficial impacts. For example, studies have shown that the positive feelings that stem from healthy relationships can have a positive effect on a person’s immunity.
And a simple hug between two loved-up individuals instantly increases the levels of oxytocin. Anxiety and heart disease are just two other conditions which romance can help keep at bay.
Living longer
In fact, the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine reports that people who fall or stay in love during their advancing years are more likely to live longer in general.
You only have to look at the likes of Bill and Joanne. Indeed, despite approaching the centenary mark, the pair still have the verve and vigor of couples a quarter of their age.
Origins story
Bill and Joanne’s story began in West Michigan way back in the late 1940s. The former was a freshman at North Muskegon High School at the time, while the latter was a junior at the same institution.
It was on a morning school bus journey that they first connected. And in perhaps a sign of how they were always destined to be together, Joanne would always save a seat for Bill from then on.
Platonic to romantic
Joanne and Bill’s relationship was strictly a platonic one at the beginning. But as the latter entered her senior year of high school, the pair then took things to the next level.
And as she told The Washington Post in 2023, Joanne certainly didn’t have any qualms about the fact that Bill was a little younger than her. “I thought he was cute,” she reasoned.
Robbing the cradle
Joanne was similarly relaxed about the age gap during the pair’s interview with Fox News in 2024. “I was robbing the cradle,” she quipped, before discussing how their relationship progressed.
“[We] became more and more attracted to each other and then the next year was serious. And in those days, you called it ‘going steady.’” And Bill didn’t have any problem with the age gap, either.
Inappropriate behavior
In fact, Bill felt like all his Christmases had come at once being with an older student. “She had a lot more seniority on me,” he told The Washington Post.
“And I was learning, so I just followed her lead.” Bill also recalled how the pair were ordered to the principal’s office for inappropriate behavior: sharing a school-bus smooch.
Senior prom
The pair eventually uttered the word ‘love’ to each other and Bill then displayed another romantic gesture when he agreed to be Joanne’s date at her school’s senior year prom.
It was here where he presented her with a silver bracelet adorned with green gems. And the pair initially managed to maintain a long-distance relationship when Joanne headed off for college.
Drifting apart
Joanne explained in her chat with Fox News how hard she and Bill had tried to keep their love story going. She said, “That first term, I would come home occasionally on weekends.”
“And we still would go roller skating or whatever.” Unfortunately, the distance proved to be too much of a barrier and the one-time lovestruck pair ended up drifting apart for good.
Married with kids
Bill went on to walk down the aisle with a woman whom he’d also courted during his high-school years. And Joanne said “I do” to a man she’d started seeing as a college student.
Both individuals also went on to become parents of three kids with their respective partners. Yet while their married lives were relatively similar, Bill and Joanne’s work lives were very different.
Different careers
Shortly after saying ‘I do’ in his late teenage years, Bill spent a couple of years stationed in the Austrian city of Salzburg while serving in the United States Army.
He then went on to enjoy more than three decades as a member of the Michigan State Police force. Joanne, on the other hand, first helped to pay the bills as a surgeon’s office manager before becoming an allergist.
College degree
Speaking to Fox News, Joanne revealed that she had also decided to go into higher education at a time when most of her same-aged friends were starting to look forward to retirement.
She explained, “In later years, I completed my degree at Eastern Michigan University when I was in my 50s, because all three of my children had college degrees by that time, and I felt like I was being left in the dust.”
Worst nightmare
Sadly, both Bill and Joanne would go through the pain of losing loved ones. The former’s wife died in 2021, a full 68 years after the pair had exchanged their vows.
That left him with only a daughter in his immediate family. As by this point, he’d also twice experienced every parent’s worst nightmare: both of his two sons had died young.
Becoming widowed
And Joanne’s husband tragically lost his life from a major heart attack at a relatively young age. In fact, he had been only 57 years old when he passed away back in the late 1980s.
Joanne told The Washington Post that despite having had opportunities, she had no interest in finding a new love. But she had second thoughts when her high-school reunion planning brought up a blast from the past.
Online search
“Somehow or other, Bill’s name came up,” Joanne explained. And with the help of daughter Linda, the former surgeon’s office manager managed to track down her high-school sweetheart online.
Although Bill wasn’t exactly down the road, he wasn’t on the other side of the world, either. Yes, Joanne and Linda discovered that he was residing in the city of Manistee, less than 100 miles away from her Muskegon home.
High-school thoughts
Joanne told People that since the death of her husband, she had often thought about the man who first captured her heart way back in the middle of the 20th century.
She said, “I had lived alone all this time, and I certainly wasn’t looking for love or a man. I was content. But he was always in the back of my mind. I loved that young boy.”
Seizing the moment
Thanks to some persuading from her daughter, Joanne decided to seize the moment and reconnect with her first love. She sent Bill a letter expressing her interest in meeting up again more than 70 years after breaking up.
And it didn’t take long for the recipient to reply. “I immediately called her, and I told her when I’m down in Muskegon, I’d stop and see her,” Bill revealed.
Man of his word
Bill soon proved he was a man of his word. Shortly after, he and Joanne headed out for a meal at a nearby restaurant. And they pretty much picked up things where they had left off.
“It was just like old times,” Bill enthused. “We just cut to the chase.” Sarah was equally upbeat, adding, “I was very fond of him in high school. The feelings came back very quickly.”
Second first date
Speaking to People about what could essentially be described as their ‘second’ first date, Bill admitted that he had been slightly taken aback by seeing his high-school sweetheart after so long.
He joked, “She didn't look anything like I remembered her 73 years ago. I guess life will do that to you.” Let’s just hope that Joanne saw the funny side!
Familiar jewelry
Soon after, the pair went to Linda’s home to watch a football game involving Michigan State. And Joanne was wearing an item of jewelry that should have been very familiar to Bill.
Yes, in another romantic gesture, Joanne decided to put on the bracelet that he had given her back in their high-school years. “It was just too pretty to get rid of,” Joanne told The Washington Post.
Fresh air
Bill and Joanne started dating again and pretty soon, they were regularly enjoying each other’s company at their respective houses. Puzzles, crosswords, and cards were just a few of the ways they passed the time.
But the pair also made sure to get some fresh air together by going on walks regularly. It's fair to say, though, that the latter was a pastime which some enjoyed more than others.
Avid walker
“I’m an avid walker,” revealed Joanne, who makes sure that she hits the one-mile mark at least three times every single week. Bill, though, is less enthusiastic about the pursuit.
He told People, “Walking is just a medium to get from one place to another and I don’t necessarily have to walk every day to remember how to do it. But I walk because she likes to do it and I like being with her.”
On the same page
Luckily, the pair seem to be on the same page when it comes to their relationship. “I think our feelings are stronger now than they were then,” Joanne claimed. And Bill appeared to concur.
He said, “We mix real well. I like everything about her. It just feels natural for me.” Luckily, both of their families are over the Moon, too, that the pair have managed to find love again later in life.
Family on-side
Joanne’s daughter Linda is particularly enthusiastic that her mother has managed to find happiness again much later in life. She told People, “Neither one of them were looking for this.”
“My father died and she never dated after that. I don't think she would’ve dated anyone besides Bill.” Linda then revealed that both sides of the family are delighted about the fact that the high-school sweethearts have reunited.
General kind of hope
And it hasn’t gone unnoticed by Linda just how giddy the pair are whenever they’re in each other’s company. And she believes that her mom and Bill can serve as an example to other people.
The proud daughter went on to tell the magazine, “Even the love they found aside, this just offers a general kind of hope for people. Life’s not over because you’re aging.”
Showing appreciation
And Bill is extremely appreciative of how Joanne’s nearest and dearest have instantly accepted him into the fold. He told Fox News, “[Linda] made me feel very, very welcome in their family.”
He went on, “As did her husband and children. And it still carries out that way. I feel very comfortable.” And it turns out that their love story has been attracting attention outside the family, too.
Free meals
In fact, Bill and Joanne have enjoyed no fewer than three free meals while eating out thanks to the generosity of diners bowled over by their obvious affection for each other.
“They said, ‘We think you’re such an adorable couple, and we want to be like you,’” Joanne recalled about one such charitable couple who put their hands in their pockets.
Good Morning America
Joanne and Bill’s reconnection has also made people sit up and take notice far outside their home state of Michigan. Their story even was featured on daytime TV institution Good Morning America.
And ever since, the loved-up couple have been continually congratulated by strangers wherever they go. Joanne said, “People will come up to us and say, ‘I saw you on TV.’ It’s been fun.”
Wedding bells?
So, could wedding bells be on the cards? Well, the pair said they’re open to the idea, but there are no such plans as yet. Bill added, “The only thing for certain is that we’ll be together.”
“I wouldn’t have it any other way.” And offering some wise words for any other elderly couples in a similar situation, Joanne said, “If the love is there, go for it.”
Retirement home
Even if they don’t walk down the aisle together, Joanne and Bill have discussed living together at some point or other. Bill still has a base in his home 80 miles away from Joanne’s.
This means they have the luxury of two homes to choose from when the time is right. Or they have also considered the possibility of moving into the same retirement home.
Thomas and Nancy
Of course, Joanne and Bill aren’t the only couple to have reconnected more than half a century after splitting up. In 2023, a man named Thomas proposed to his high-school sweetheart Nancy.
This was a full 60 years after they had first gone out. And having made the gesture in the very public space of Tampa International Airport, he soon went viral on TikTok.
Heart skips a beat
“My dearest Nancy, it’s been 60 years since we first met, 56 years since we first dated, ten years since I saw you last and 20 days since we rekindled,” Thomas’ proposal began.
“You have always been the one I had a crush on since your cheerleader days. Brings me a smile to my face and makes my heart skip a beat.” And he wasn’t done there.
Kindness and compassion
Thomas continued, “Your beauty inside and out have always captivated me. Your kindness and compassion to those less fortunate… have touched my heart. You are everything I’ve ever wanted in a partner, lover, and friend.”
“And so, Nancy, I come to you humbly today June 30 with a proposal... I love you more than words can express, more than you could ever comprehend. I want to spend the rest of my life proving that to you, making you the happiest woman in the world.”
Round of applause
Having reeled off a number of other highly romantic sentiments, Thomas concluded, “Will you, Nancy, do me the honor of being my soulmate in life, my partner in every sense of the word, my beloved wife forever? Marry me?”
Thankfully, Nancy answered in the affirmative before the pair hugged each other. And like a scene from a Hollywood romantic comedy, the watching passersby then offered a round of applause.
Jim and Janice
Then there’s the heartwarming story of Wisconsin couple Jim and Janice. Like Bill and Joanne, they first met as students on a high-school bus back in the late 1940s.
But life happened, and the pair eventually went their separate ways. Luckily, the couple managed to reconnect well into their 80s. And this time around, they made sure they stayed in touch.
Portage County Courthouse
Yes, in 2018, lovebirds Janice and Jim headed to the nearby Portage County Courthouse where they were officially announced as husband and wife in front of their nearest and dearest.
And they celebrated in a manner which proved they still had a very youthful appetite. Instead of any fine dining, the newlyweds joined their loved ones for some good old-fashioned pizza!
Bad news side
Of course, the likes of Thomas and Nancy and Bill and Joanne are some of the luckier later-in-life couples. Speaking to AARP, psychoanalyst Polly Young-Eisendrath acknowledged the challenges that others can face.
She said, “The difficult, or bad news side, is that you already have a tribe, you have a family, you have children. Bringing a new person into the context of your life is sometimes really difficult.”
Cultivating the relationship
“Be aware that you need to cultivate this relationship freshly,” the experienced Young-Eisendrath went on to add. “Show up with each other’s tribe, get to know each other’s history and children.”
And the psychoanalyst sure knows what she’s talking about, too. After losing her husband of 25 years to early-onset Alzheimer’s, Young-Eisendrath managed to find love again with a new partner.
Not a cookie-cutter thing
But the Kinsey Institute’s senior research fellow Helen Fisher told the same site that such relationships are, in fact, generally easier to navigate than those formed earlier on in life.
The self-help author and biological anthropologist then explained, “The beauty of older people is that they can build the kind of partnerships that they want. It's not this cookie-cutter thing.”
Life is short
But when it comes to the benefits of later-in-life relationships, Joanne perhaps said it best. She told Fox News, "If you feel the love for each other, then just spend time together.”
“Because life is short, and we realize that now, at our age, we don't know how much time we have together, but we’re just making the most of every day.”