Together... thanks to rapid Covid test
THIS picture shows an elderly couple who have been married for more than 60 years holding hands at a Cornish care home – for the first time in eight months.
Shirley and Freddie Lowe, both 79, had been kept apart and had not been able to touch each other since March to avoid the risk of coronavirus spreading through the home.
Their emotional reunion was captured by staff at King Charles Court care home, and was made possible after the home was selected as one of 20 across the UK to stage trials of a rapid new coronavirus test system.
The couple had barely been apart during their 63-year marriage and Shirley had continued to visit her husband every day at his care home in Falmouth – before the pandemic struck.
Visits were totally banned between March and July and then from August to November, with only socially distanced ones allowed in between. But the rapid Covid-19 test, which gives a result within 30 minutes, has allowed a series of reunions to take place.
Melissa Jones, the manager of the care home, described the embrace between Shirley and Freddie as a deeply moving moment that had offered a glimmer of light at the end of the darkest of tunnels.
She said: “Shirley and Freddie are such a lovely couple. Before the pandemic, Shirley was here most days and would spend any time she could with him. They are just so in love and are like they have just been married.
“They have such a happy, wonderful marriage that is really special, and they have been missing each other terribly. They have stayed in touch and had some brief visits, a handful, in August, but it was in communal
areas with screens set up. This has been their first contact since March,” Ms Jones added.
“They were able to hold hands and have some privacy. It was the first time they were able to hold hands since March, and that meant everything to them.
“Freddie is such a lovely gentleman, but he had a different kind of smile on show – one he saves just for his wife.”
The couple were married at the age of 19 and honeymooned in
Paris. They returned there 50 years later to celebrate their golden wedding anniversary, when he surprised her with an eternity ring.
Ms Jones said the reunions they had been able to facilitate had been a joy. She added: “We had a week’s notice from the Government to get it started, and pulled out all stops to make it happen.
“It has been great. There’s no time limit and they can stay as long as they like. We don’t monitor the visitors and they can spend time in private rooms.
“This was the first start of a little bit of normality coming back. Walking down the corridor to hear one of the residents finally laughing inside our home was absolutely lovely.
“It has been a very stressful time for everyone, but we are now hopeful of getting back to some sort of normality. Their adoration for each other is truly wonderful to witness.”
Shirley said: “It was so wonderful to see him and hold his hand. I was so pleased and grateful for everything the home has done to make this happen.”