It was a red-letter day.
Two women who have been pen pals for 51 years finally met in person for the first time — and the memorable moment was captured in a heartwarming TikTok video that got over 130,000 views.
Debbie Houschild, of Oceanport, New Jersey, started writing to Jane Bean of Sittingbourne, England, in 1974, when they were both just 11.
The pair continued communicating throughout every stage of their lives.
When the women realized they were celebrating a staggering milestone of 50 years of correspondence, Houschild decided she would travel to England to meet Bean.
“We both immediately just stuck our arms out, like, finally. It was very exciting,” Houschild, whose daughter filmed their momentous meeting, told NJ Advance Media.
“It felt like the most natural meet up and chat with an old friend you could possibly imagine,” Bean added. “I’ve got friends that I live near that I’ve known for more than 50 years, like from school, and going up and meeting Deb was just like meeting up with one of those.”
The fateful pairing came about through the ’70s educational children’s television show “Big Blue Marble,” which offered viewers the opportunity to request a pen pal from another country at the end of each episode.
The tweens quickly developed a friendship, and besides letters, also exchanged cards and photos; in the 2000s, they switched to emails.
“It was really like having a friend my age, only we never saw each other in person,” Houschild told the outlet.
“I had two girls; she had two boys. We were both divorced at some point. So, we’ve had, in some ways, similar lives.”
During their reunion, Houschild even surprised Bean with a stack of their old letters and a t-shirt of the Bay City Rollers, a Scottish pop rock band she was a fan of when they were younger.
The ladies had such a blast, they’re already making plans for another reunion.
“We just always seem to come back to each other again, which I’m eternally grateful for,” Bean said.
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