A UK senior was moved to tears after a nursing home caretaker gave him a pillow bearing the photo of his deceased wife of 71 years, as seen in a heartwarming Facebook video.
“Safe to say, we all shed a tear today,” reads the clip posted Saturday by the Thistleton Lodge retirement home in Preston.
The clip, which currently boasts almost 300,000 views, shows the 94-year-old war veteran crying passionately in the arms of 17-year-old Kia Tobin over her selfless gesture.
“Ada was the most wonderful, caring wife,” says Ken Benbow, who moved to Thistleton after his wife died in August at age 93, reports BBC.
The former navy man managed to keep his beloved near and dear even in death, by sleeping with her framed photograph every night.
Benbow would speak to his dearly departed wife’s photo every night.
Moved by Benbow’s devotion, Tobin, his caretaker, decided to reunite the soulmates more intimately by printing Ada’s image on a pillow. “Ken is so funny and an amazing person,” says Tobin.
The touching totem triggered a geyser of emotion from Benbow, who calls the pillow “most precious thing I could have wished for.”
“Now he can take the pillow to bed with him and give it a good squeeze,” says Tobin, who is one of the grateful widower’s caretakers.
Needless to say, social media masses were touched by the selfless act.
“What a lovely thing to do,” gushed one awestruck Facebook commenter. “I’m sure lots of residents in isolation would appreciate one. What a wonderful reaction, bless him.”
Unfortunately, nursing homes have borne the brunt of the coronavirus pandemic. In New York City alone, about 2,056 nursing home residents have been killed by the virus so far.
“What an angel Kia is, and wonderful to see the bond between her and Ken,” said another.
“We were married for 71 years and it broke my heart when she left me, but now I’ve got her every night in my arms,” says Benbow.