“I love you. Wait for me, I’ll be there soon.” That is what Jeanette Toczko told her husband Alexander as soon as he died in her arms, on June 17, 2015, in San Diego.
They had known each other since they were 8, in Stamford, Connecticut, the children of Polish immigrants who could not even imagine what fate had in store for them.
They married in 1940 and never let go of each other: he served in the Navy during World War II, later founded a photography studio in San Diego, and she was his lifelong stylist.
When Alexander broke his hip in May of that year, the family knew the end was near. A hospice service brought a bed to the house so they could stay together until the very last minute.
With balloons and flowers, they celebrated their 75th anniversary while he was dying in her arms.
Jeanette kept her promise. She died just 24 hours later, on June 18, without having spent even a single day alone without him.