In an age where cursive handwriting is rarely taught in schools anymore, two women are celebrating a 56-year friendship based solely on the lost art of handwritten letters.
Nearly six decades after first putting an ad for a pen pal in a national church publication, Boulder, Colorado, resident Beverly Fest finally met her long-time pen pal Jan Smith on Thursday, June 8. According to Daily Camera, Smith and her partner had traveled all the way from Fairborn, Ohio, for the face-to-face meeting at Fest's home in Boulder.We've been through so much together — all through a paper and pencil," Smith told Daily Camera. "I don't know what took us so long."It was true -- Though the two began writing to each other when they were 12 (one from Iowa and the other from Niagara Falls, New York), their communication had endured their growing-up years, marriages, births of kids, divorce, loss of a spouse, and births of grandchildren.
Now 68, both women had decided a couple of years back that they should really try to meet in person. "We're getting kind of old," Fest had said. "We need to see each other before we, well, you know."
And though Smith had seen Fest's face in Christmas card photos, until their meeting on Thursday, Fest had never seen a picture of Smith (who doesn't have Facebook) in all these years. But they were very familiar with each other's penmanship. Smith's is nearly perfect, her pen pal says. Of course, familiar handwriting is a rare and welcome sight in this day in age.
It's really nice," Fest said. "You go to the mailbox, and it's so often just junk, junk, bill, junk, junk, but it's rare to get a handwritten letter."Even so, the two have moved their communication over to email in the last few years. That's probably acceptable, given that they've managed to stay so close over the years with only the magic of the written word! "I've known her longer than any of my friends in Boulder," Fest said. She's lived in the area for about 40 years. So what's next for the two friends? After a homemade dinner, the women (who would be joined by Fest's husband and Smith's partner) planned to embark on a drive through Rocky Mountain National Park to see some of the local beauty over the weekend. What do you think? Have you ever had a pen pal? Tell us your stories in the comments!
