Vernon, Connecticut resident Bob Shellard has not been allowed to visit his wife due to COVID-19 coronavirus precautions, but that didn't stop him from celebrating their 67th wedding anniversary. NBC New Yorkreports that Shellard can't get into the nursing home in which his wife Nancy lives, so he stood outside her window with a sign to wish her a happy anniversary.
"I've loved you 67 years and still do. Happy Anniversary," his sign read.
"It makes me feel bad because I want her down with me and I know she can't be," Bob said. Nancy responded to his gesture by waving and blowing kisses from her window, which is on the second floor of the nursing home. "I wouldn't want anybody else. I don't think she could put up with anybody else besides me."
In the state of Connecticut, there's currently a ban forbiding vistors from entering nursing homes for 30 days. The couple's daughter Laura said their relationship has been inspiring, especially as the world grapples with the COVID-19 pandemic. "They have always been an inspiration to us," she said. "There's just a sweetness to the two of them and what they share."
Prior to the ban, Bob went to visit Nancy every day, and this is the first year they have been apart for their anniversary.
