100-Year-Old Veteran Wasn't Interested in 96-Year-Old When They First Met - Now Theyre Getting Married

Eighty years ago, a World War II veteran named Harold Terens landed in France as a 20-year-old Army Air Forces corporal. It was shortly after D-Day, and the vet had seen and experienced a number of hardships and victories since enlisting in 1942.

This summer, Terens will return to France as part of the 80^th anniversary celebration of the country’s liberation from the Nazis. There, according to the Associated Press, the 100-year-old will mark the occasion by marrying his fiancée, Jeanne Swerlin.   

Never Too Old for Love

Terens and Swerlin, who is 96, will marry in a town called Carentan-les-Marais near the beaches where the U.S. troops landed, reports the publication. The couple met in 2021 when mutual friends thought they would hit it off.

At their first lunch together, they barely looked at each other because Terens was still grieving the death of his wife Thelma and wasn't interested in other women. But when friends brought them to dinner the next night, it was love at second sight.

“He was introducing me to the whole world, ‘I want you to meet my girl, my sweetheart,’ and I didn’t even know him more than two days,” Swerlin recalled. “Being in love is not just for the young. We get butterflies just like everybody else.”

A few months ago, Terens got down on one knee and recalled Swerlin being “hysterical.”

“I thought I’d have to help him up, but he’s so macho,” she said.

The wedding will take place June 8 in a chapel built in the 1600s and will be officiated by the mayor, Jean-Pierre Lhonneur. Legally, Lhonneur is only allowed to marry town residents, but he believes the local prosecutor will allow an exception in this case.

“It will be a pleasure for us,” Lhonneur said.

Finding Love Again

This won’t be the bride or groom's first wedding. Terens married his first wife, Thelma, in 1948. They had two daughters and a son, and Terens went on to work for a British conglomerate. Thelma passed away in 2018 after 70 years of marriage, leaving behind eight grandchildren and 10 great-grandchildren.

Swerlin married when she was 21 years old and became a full-time mom to two girls and a boy. Her first husband passed away when she was in her 40s, but she found love again and married her second husband. They were married for 18 years when he, too, passed away. Swerlin found her third love, a man named Sol Katz, after that. They lived together for 25 years before he died in 2019.

Katz’ daughter, who met Terens when her kids and Terens’ grandchildren went to camp together, was the first to introduce the vet to Swerlin.

“She gave my dad such joy,” the daughter explained. “I didn’t want her to be lonely.”

Looks like she got her wish.

“I love this girl — she is quite special,” Terens said.

“He’s an amazing guy, amazing,” Swerlin said. “He loves me so much, and he says it. And my god, he’s the greatest kisser!”

It’s Never Too Late

Hearing about a 100-year-old and a 96-year-old finding each other and feeling like high school sweethearts is downright heartwarming.

It reminds us that it’s never too late for love, new chances, or a shot at life. We never know what the world will throw at us, and sometimes, it can feel like the bad outweighs the good.

But if you keep putting yourself out there and remain open to unexpected opportunities, the good can also outweigh the bad.

If these two could find each other after losing so many loved ones and experiencing the hardships of war, then anyone can. We all deserve good things in life, but the first step to getting them is to believe in ourselves and our ability to love — no matter how old we are!

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