Man Reunited with his Wartime Girlfriend 70 Years Later

Before you read: some questions to help you think about the topic and the words you might need.

How would you feel if you lost contact with someone and saw them again many years later?

What do you think will happen in this story today?

After 70 years a couple have hooked up again.

She smiled and recalled the fun times they’d had all those years ago in England.

They laughed like teenagers. She was his wartime sweetheart.

At the end of their two-hour video reunion, WWII veteran Norwood Thomas told Joyce Morris, his wartime girlfriend, that he’d love to reunite in person someday and not just on the internet.  And he said he wanted to give her a hug after more than 70 years apart.

But he didn’t expect it would actually happen.

Morris, 88, has lost much of her eyesight and lives on the other side of the world, in Australia. Thomas, 93, has health problems of his own and lives on a pension in Virginia Beach.

But after the story of their online reunion was seen in The Virginian-Pilot newspaper two months ago, hundreds of people reached out, asking how they could help reunite the pair. Readers started an online collection; more than 300 people made donations. Others mailed money directly to Thomas’ house. One neighbor flagged him down and gave him cash.

More than $7,500 has been donated since then, a kind result from complete strangers, but not enough to cover travel to Australia and back.

Air New Zealand is paying for the rest.

The airline confirmed this week that it had organized everything to send Thomas and his caretaker son, Steve, to Adelaide, Australia, next month.

They’ll fly first class, free of charge.

Thomas says he’s stunned and amazed by all the kindness.

I’m over the moon about meeting again. And he says that he has no idea what his emotions are going to be once they meet face to face.

He’ll find out soon.

If everything goes as he plans then Norwood and Joyce will spend Valentine’s Day together in Australia.

Try to guess the meaning of the words in bold and match them with their closest meaning from the choices in the right. Some of the answers are very close and have similar meaning. The meaning of these words is how they are used in the reading. Some of these words have different meanings in the dictionary depending on how they are used.

 The answers are below the table.

A=7, B=1, C=4, D=8, E=1, F=6, G=3, H=5

Some example sentences using the new words or phrases from the meaning of how they are used in the reading to help you understand better.

1. Many people have been reunited with family members from North Korea at the meeting between the two countries.

2. Dating sites are a place that many people hook up these days.

3. I could not recall all the answers in the test.

4. He married his high school sweetheart.

5. Facebook is a good way to reach out to people you have not seen for many years.

6. It’s harder to flag down a taxi when it’s raining hard.

7. She was one of the most beautiful and stunning models I have seen.

8. My son was over the moon to be accepted into medical school at the best university in the country.

    

    

Some questions using the new words/phrases. Try to use the words/phrases in your answer.

1. Is there someone in your life you would like to reunite with?

2. What is a good way to hook up with a date when you are young in your country?

3. What interesting stories did you your grandparents recall to you?

4. What would it be like to marry your high school or university sweetheart if they were the only person you ever dated?

5. Who would you reach out to that you haven’t seen in many years? Why?

6. Where are the worst places to try and flag down a taxi in your city?

7. How stunned would you be if this happened to you or a family member?

8. What experience might make you feel over the moon?