Jean Smyth (St. Peters, MO), received the American Red Cross Lifesaver Award for saving the life of her husband, Bob. Jean was able to recognize the symptoms of a stroke, and got Bob to the hospital in time to get the most effective treatment.
This is only a part of the Bob and Jean Smyth story. It’s not only a story of one saving the other’s life; but a true love story as well. If you love romance novels, you’ll enjoy this short read about a real-life couple right here in the St. Louis area. Here’s how it all began, written by Jean herself.
“Bob and I met and fell in love in 1960. The problem was, I was a 9th grader, and he was a Senior! My parents were not pleased about the differences in our ages. (I wasn't even allowed to date yet!) After Bob went off to college our lives moved on.
I saw Bob one more time, when he dropped by our house to say hello, on his way to a recruiters job in Columbia. I was at home with my hair in rollers, a 5 year old clinging to my hip and an infant in my arms. At the time he seemed very nervous and anxious to leave.
In 2001, some 10 years after his father and I divorced, my son suggested that I join Classmates.com to connect with old high school friends. Within the first 24 hours I received an email from Bob, asking if I remembered him. We emailed back and forth a few times, filling each other in on our histories. Less than a week later, Bob wrote that he had something to tell me, but he didn't want to "scare" me. Then he wrote that he had been in love with me for the past 40 years, had never forgotten about me, and said, " If I come up to St. Louis and you still like me, will you marry me?"
I asked how he could possibly ask me that when he didn't know what I looked like, or what kind of person I was. He replied that what I looked like didn't matter, and he could tell from my letters that I was still the girl he had fallen in love with way back then. I said, "Well I guess you'd better come visit and we'll see what happens."
I knew 5 minutes after he got off the plane that we belonged together! He reminded me of the time he had come to visit, and I teased him, saying I thought he had been anxious to leave because he was not "very impressed" with what he saw. He said No, he had just wanted to sweep me into his arms and tell me he loved me, and felt he'd better leave quickly!!
We've now been married for 7 years, and are as giddy and in love as we were when we were teenagers!”
Saving a life, especially a loved-one’s life, is a gift you can be prepared for just by taking a class with the American Red Cross. Learn how to recognize the symptoms of a stroke and you could be the star in your very own love story someday.