They had both loved deeply, and they had both lost.
Linda was a widow. Richard was a widower. Life had taught them grief, patience, and how precious love truly is. Neither of them was searching for another chapter, yet somehow, one quietly found them.

It was early July in 2010, just after the Fourth of July celebration, when the Carmel Festival filled the town with music and summer light. Families gathered near the gazebo as bands took turns playing, children danced freely, and laughter floated through the warm evening air. Linda was there with her family, surrounded by her grandchildren. One of them, a musician, was especially excited to be part of the night.

That was when she noticed him.

A man dancing without hesitation, a bottle of water tucked into the back pocket of his pants, smiling as he moved to the music alongside the children. Richard danced with pure joy, as if nothing else mattered in that moment. It caught her attention, not because it was loud or showy, but because it was genuine.

When the band took a break, Linda asked her grandchildren if they wanted to get something to eat or go play in the fountain. She had just turned when someone tapped her gently on the shoulder.

It was Richard.

He asked if her name was Pam. She smiled and told him it was not, though he explained she reminded him of someone he once knew. He asked who she was there with, and she gestured toward her family. Then he asked where her husband was, and when she told him, he understood immediately.

He asked if they could talk, and Linda invited him to walk along with her family. She sensed right away that he was sincere and kind, with a gentle, grandfatherly warmth about him. They wandered through the festival together, pausing at a display where plants grew before their eyes. The grandchildren were fascinated, and so was Linda.

Richard stayed with her the entire evening, talking easily and listening closely. Before the night ended, he asked for her phone number. Linda told him she did not give it out. He asked again, politely and hopefully. She hesitated, then turned to her daughter for advice. Her daughter smiled and said, “Why not?”

So Linda gave him her number.

Richard lived in Britton Falls, a place Linda had once considered herself. For three weeks, he called. For three weeks, she did not answer. Still, he kept calling. Finally, she agreed to meet him for coffee. What was meant to be a short visit turned into three hours of conversation. They discovered how much they had in common, and how easy it was to talk to one another.

At the end of that first date, Richard leaned in for a kiss. It felt too soon, and Linda pulled away. For the next two weeks, she ignored him completely. Richard, however, kept calling to apologize, sincerely and repeatedly. Eventually, she forgave him and agreed to see him again, with one condition. They would meet somewhere public.

They took the bus to the State Fair, and it turned out to be the perfect choice. They laughed, wandered, shared food and music, and had a wonderful time. Linda saw clearly then that Richard was kind, gentle, and sweet. From that day on, she allowed herself to truly spend time with him, and love slowly grew.

They continued dating, growing closer with each passing year. Nearly three years in, their children began to ask why they were not married. They were always together, always traveling back and forth, building a life side by side.

Richard proposed at the Carmel gazebo, the very place where they first met. In 2015, exactly five years to the day after that first meeting, they were married there as well.

Linda loves Richard’s huge heart, his generosity, and the way he cares so deeply for everyone and everything around him. They both love to dance, and they are often the first ones on the dance floor and the last to leave. Summers are spent dancing at outdoor concerts, and winters are spent in The Villages in Florida, where live music fills the nights.

Life did not promise them an easy road. Richard was diagnosed with dementia, something they knew was possible when they married. He told Linda she could walk away if she wanted, that she did not have to choose this path. She never considered leaving. Loving him meant staying, in every season of life.

Richard loves art and teaches his granddaughter how to draw. He has two grandchildren, and Linda has six. Linda has two children, Michael and Jennifer. Richard has one son, the Dean of IU Indianapolis. Their family is full, layered, and deeply connected.

This is their love story.
A story of second chances, steady devotion, and choosing joy, again and again.