Patricia’s story

“I first met John in 1959 on the bus to work and we sat next to each other most mornings. I thought he was lovely and we courted for about three months until – for a reason we can’t remember – we split. John went off to teaching college and I stayed at work. He met his wife and shortly after, I met my husband. “I had a very happy marriage as well as two boys. My husband and I ran a small hotel together until he sadly passed away in 2007. “I’d thought about John now and again, wondering what he was up to, if he was still alive. Then one morning in August 2016 I woke up and suddenly said to myself ‘you must find John, he needs you’. As I regularly get Yours,I thought I’d place a note in the Where are You? column, asking for anyone who knew of John Sheen or his sister Jennifer. “Incredibly a lady contacted me to say she was a friend of Jennifer’s and gave me her number. She, in turn, gave me John’s address. “I wrote to him and, soon after, John rang – it had apparently taken him four attempts to pluck up the courage! We talked for an hour and instantly knew it was going to be more than friendship between us. It felt wonderful to hear his voice after all those years and lit a spark again. “From there we rang each other every day until one day he said he was going to Australia over Christmas to see his daughter and could he visit me before he went? I said yes and when he came the attraction between us was enormous. He was just the same as the boy I’d fallen in love with all those years ago. He proposed there and then and we went out to buy an engagement ring that afternoon! It was a whirlwind but everyone was very happy for us. “Our wedding day was fantastic and my two sons gave me away which was very special. Straight after the wedding I moved into John’s home in Greater Manchester. We’re going to honeymoon somewhere once I’ve settled in but our future is looking very happy together. “I never imagined when I sent the letter to Yours that I’d now be married to the man I was looking for. John and I are extremely fortunate to have a second chance and it’s thanks to my letter being published that all this has happened.”

‘It felt wonderful to hear his voice after all those years and light a spark again’