Authorities Force Elderly Couple To Separate After 69 Years Of Marriage

Aug 30, 2018 by apost team

This couple is being forced to separate after 73 years together, thanks to a decision regarding their nursing home placement.

Marriage is meant to be a lifetime commitment. In today's modern world, many people choose to abandon these marriages. Divorce rates are higher than they've ever been. But for some people, the separation of their marriage isn't voluntary. It's forced. Such is the case for one couple who have been together for 73 years and married for 69 of them.

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89-year-old Audrey Goodine has been married to her 91-year-old husband, Herbert Goodine, for almost eight decades. Their marriage has lasted 69 years. But even though the two are wholly devoted to each other and still desperately in love, they were the recent recipients of bad news.

Prior to the news, the couple had stayed together in the Victoria Villa Special Care Home. The home had been their main place of residence for the previous three years. But doctors made the discovery that Herbert's dementia is worsening. As such, the administration made the decision to move Herbert to a location they have deemed more suitable. This decision can have devastating consequences, though: He might never be able to see Audrey again.

The news broke just before Christmas. Audrey and Herbert were both devastated by the thought of spending the holidays apart. Their family, on the other hand, was outraged. After 73 years spent together, a forced separation shouldn't be taken lightly. The family members are furious about the administration's decision.

Audrey and Herbert's daughter, Dianne Phillips, was given an explanation for the choice through an email sent by the nursing home. She said she had to read the message multiple times to get over her shock and disbelief. She didn't understand how this cruelty could be done just a week before Christmas.

Dianne made repeated requests that her father have his residency extended until the end of the week. Even though she requested it repeatedly, she was denied. The administration did not care that they were forcing this longtime couple to spend Christmas apart.

The owner of the nursing home says that she has a different perspective. It would be against the law not to move Herbert, she says. His condition means he needs Level 3 care, but she only has a Level 2 rating for her institution.

Dianne argues that the nursing home should have been more sensitive about their protocols and made efforts not to move her father before Christmas. Her efforts eventually paid off, and the couple spent Christmas together. Right now, she's advocating for them both to be moved into the same nursing home.

A beautiful couple shouldn't be separated because of medical reasons. What do you think of this situation?