105-Year-Old Groom and His 86-Year-Old Bride Prove It's Never Too Late for Love

Teresa Neumann : Feb 23, 2010
Theresa Campbell - The Daily Commercial

"This was definitely God's leading," said John of meeting his wife. "I love her wonderful and gracious spirit, her interest in people, and her love of God."

(Leesburg, Florida)—Recently celebrating their second wedding anniversary, John Annas, 105, and his relatively new bride, Lenore Bayus, 86, spoke with reporter Theresa Campbell about how they fell in love. Though this story was originally published on Valentine's Day, it's message is timeless.

John, a retired Methodist minister—who "religiously spends his morning in prayer" and often ministers to other residents at the Lake Port Square facility where they reside—was widowed after nearly 50 years of marriage. Lenore was also widowed. Originally, neither of their families were receptive to the idea of them getting married, thinking they were too old.

But, as reported in The Daily Commercial, the lovebirds chose to follow their hearts and now they cherish the companionship they share.
"This was definitely God's leading," said John of meeting his wife. "I love her wonderful and gracious spirit, her interest in people, and her love of God."

"I've discovered somebody who makes my half a whole," he added. "I'm 105 and I've never been happier than I am now. I have a wonderful companionship with Lenore (Bayus) Annas, a woman who makes me smile, laugh, and she makes my heart sing. "I've tried to write a poem about her, but words fail me. She's beyond and above anything I can put into words. Next to God, she's it."

"He's closer to God than anybody else that I have ever known," Lenore said of John.

Read more of this uplifting couple by clicking on the link below.