On a bicycle built for 2
They rode through life together.
When Chuck and Harriet began dating, he didn’t have a car, so she’d perch on the handlebars of his bike and off they’d go. That’s why I titled their chapter in War Bonds, “Bicycle Built for Two.”
They were married January 16, 1944 by a Navy chaplain at a YMCA and a dozen eager sailors served as their witnesses. After two months together, Chuck was sent to France and they spent 17 months apart. That was too much for both of them.
And so for the next 72 years they were inseparable.
Chuck died August 7 and Harriet passed away September 10th.
Today I received this note from their family.
Your book was such a blessing to our family. We had several copies that we passed around at their celebration Sunday. A copy always sat on their dressing table which we showed to all their many health care providers. If Mom was having a bad day, they would sing “Bicycle Built for Two” and that would cheer her up. Thank you for writing such a meaningful book.
But I’m the one who has been blessed to meet such amazing people and to share just a small part of their lives.
Their stories have become part of my own story and I’m forever thankful.
