A 98-year-old WWII veteran kept a photo of his wartime sweetheart for 75 years, hoping to one day see her again. As years passed, he realized his long-lost lover was likely gone, so he decided to look for her family instead. However, he found more than he had ever hoped.Kara Troy Robbins, better known as “KT,” was based with the U.S. Army in France during World War II in 1944. There, the 24-year-old soldier met and fell in love with a young woman. The French bombshell who caught KT’s eye and eventually stole his heart was named Jeannine Pierson, and the 18-year-old local gal was quite the looker.
Despite a language barrier, the two fell madly in love and had a whirlwind romance until the young lovers were sadly separated. In a hurried ordeal, KT was sent to the Eastern Front to fight. He survived, but he eventually lost contact with Jeannine. After the war, he moved back to the United States.Unbeknownst to each other, both KT and Jeannine longed to reconnect with one another. In fact, when the war ended, Jeannine even learned English, hoping KT would return to France. But, he never did. Instead, he went on to marry another woman in America, and Jeannine eventually moved on too, marrying another man in France.
Although KT married someone else, he never forgot about the French girl he had met overseas. He even kept a picture of her throughout the years. He kept that old black-and-white photo of Jeannine safely tucked away — for three-quarters of a century — hoping to one day see her in person again. After 75 years, KT finally had the opportunity to return to France to celebrate the anniversary of D-Day in Normandy. His wife had passed away, and his thoughts immediately turned to his long-lost first love as he planned to return to where they had met so long ago. KT knew 75 years is a very long time. Being 98 years old and lucky to still be alive himself, KT assumed Jeannine had long since passed. “For sure, I won’t ever get to see her,” he said. “She’s probably gone now.” He’d soon learn how wrong he was when he decided he’d still like to find Jeannine’s family and speak with them.
