SURREY, British Columbia-- A Canadian couple who have been happily married for sixty-two years-- recently in a nursing home-- have been forced the last eight months to live in separate assisted living facilities. Wolfram and Anita Gottschalk had to say their farewells this past year when they were separated by their living arrangements while both of them are living with declining health, making the separation even more impactful to their relationship. The couple had not even spent more than a week apart since they first met each other, a classic love at first site story.
Luckily, since Wolfram is on a waiting list to be transferred to Anita's living facility, their granddaughter, Ashley, and daughter drive Anita on an inconvenient forty-minute drive ever other day to Wolfram's assisted living facility. The goodbyes each time do not get any easier for the heartbroken couple. Ashley shared on her Facebook page the somber farewells between the couple after each visit.
Wolfram suffers from dementia and a recent diagnosis with lymphoma, so the anxiety that comes with each day of separation increases rapidly. The girls fear that the separation will cause Wolfram to lose memory of Anita.
For a couple with a long-lasting relationship such as them, that is not only heartbreaking, but absolutely unacceptable and should raise question about senior care in British Columbia. Anita and Wolfram and family are determined to reunite the relationship.
