Norwood Thomas was 21 and a paratrooper when he met 17-year-old Joyce in London, shortly before D-Day.
Then came the war, the letters, and a misunderstanding. According to AP, she thought he had found someone else and stopped writing. Both married other people and moved on, each on their own side of the world. Norwood’s wife died in 2001; Joyce divorced after 30 years of marriage.
One day, one of Joyce’s children searched for Norwood’s name online and found it in an article about D-Day. They reconnected by video call in November 2015, talking for two hours. More than 300 people donated to fund the trip, and Air New Zealand provided tickets for Norwood and his son Steve.
On February 10, 2016, at 93, he landed in Adelaide. Facing her, Norwood said: “This is the most wonderful thing that could have happened to me”. Joyce, 88, replied with a laugh that they would have a wonderful fortnight. They planned to spend Valentine’s Day together.
