DOWNERS GROVE, Ill. — A suburban couple who met at a retirement community are thankful for a second chance at love on Valentine’s Day.
Irene Strange, 90, and Bob Neder, 93, didn’t give any thought to finding someone when they moved into Oak Trace Senior Living Community in 2017 and 2015 respectively.
Both married for over 60 years, Irene lost her husband to Parkinson’s and Bob lost his wife to dementia.
Living down the hall from each other, neither had any idea Oak Trace’s trash room would spark a great chapter in their lives five years ago — each other.
The two said it was “easy to converse” during their first interaction in the trash room.
“I felt like I wanted to connect with someone who wasn’t a guy. I saw Irene around and she seemed to have more life than other people,” Bob said. “She acted full of life. I was nervous thinking about asking her out, and I was afraid she’d say ‘no.’ Then things would be awkward, with us living right down the hall from each other.”
He went for it and immediately gave Irene butterflies.