In an Iowa care center, a 94-year old man breathed his last after praying to follow his wife of 73 years.
The man’s name was James Wold. he was married to Wanda, who was 96 years old and had Alzheimer’s. They lived in the Concord Care Center in Garner, Iowa.
According to Candy Engstler, the couple’s daughter, when her mother died at 4 AM on July 20, James prayed with hands folded. He said, “Thank you, Jesus. Thank you for taking her and would you please take me.” Her father then passed away at 7 AM that same day.
Engstler said that the marriage of her parents was full of love and faith in Jesus. She believes that God allowed them to go home on the same day.
It was their time, Engstler confided. The Lord had called them and He did it in a very beautiful way which is something I will hold dear to my heart forever, she said.
The couple were married in 1948. James joined the U.S. He had served in World War II.
Similarly, a couple in Skokie village took their last breath while holding hands in the Highland Park Hospital. When their family and loved ones saw that they were about to die, they requested that they put their hospital beds together side by side.
The couple, Isaac Vatkin and his wife Teresa, had been married for 69 years died just forty-minutes apart. Teresa was first to be admitted to the nursing home because of her Alzheimer’s disease.
Isaac fought for her as he asked his grandchildren to teach him how to use the computer so that he can research for a cure for the disease of his wife. He also resisted having his wife go to a nursing home. But when he accepted his children’s request, he made it a point to visit her every day.