Lost love found for Tok’ man

Just hours after taking his search for his long lost love public, John Waters was speaking to the woman who stole his heart 40 years ago.

He had not spoken to her for twenty years and in desperation made his search for his public last week.

‘‘I knew it was her as soon as she spoke my name,’’ the Tokoroa man said on Tuesday. ‘‘My heart just fell out of my chest.’’

The woman on the other end of the phone was Julie, the girl he had loved and lost in the 1970s and despite catching up with her a number of times since then, one of the pair was always married so their love could not be rekindled.

But not this time. After an hour talking on the phone with Julie, who now lives about two hours drive away in Hastings, Waters confirmed she was single.

They had caught up a few times over the years but one of them was always married to someone else.

‘‘I don’t quite really know what’s going to happen but she sounds really good. From the amount of time we spent on the phone it sounds quite positive,’’ Waters said. ‘‘She was a little bit shocked to start off with. ‘‘When she’s ready we plan on meeting but I’m not going to suggest when or where. ‘‘I’m not going to rush her.’’ Waters said a woman in Australia, a close school friend of Julie’s, saw Monday’s story of his search for Julie and sent her a link.

John had also passed on his details to a local woman who knew Julie and a couple of hours later he got the phone call. He said he was elated to hear from her. He said she had gone to Stratford in Taranaki as he thought, but had then moved on.

The two talked on the phone for an hour and have tentative plans to meet in person soon.

He is hopeful it won’t be too far away, as she is only two hours away from his home in Tokoroa.

He is grateful to everyone who helped him find her.

‘‘I’m really elated.’’