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'I’ve always loved you': WWII veteran reunites with teen sweetheart after 75 years

A WWII veteran has been reunited with his first love 75 years after leaving her behind when he was transferred to fight on the Eastern Front.

Kara Troy “KT” Robbins was an American soldier stationed in north eastern France in 1944, when he met 18-year-old French girl Jeannine Ganaye.

The pair fell in love while Mr Robbins spent three months in the young woman’s village, but their courtship ended when he was suddenly deployed, Fox News reported.

American WWII veteran KT Robbins and French sweetheart Jeannine Ganaye reunited 75 years later.
WWII veteran KT Robbins has been reunited with his first love Jeannine Ganaye 75 years after leaving her behind. Source: Fox News

After the war, Mr Robbins returned to his hometown of Memphis. The pair eventually married other people, but neither ever got over their first love.

Along with his war memorabilia, the 97-year-old had kept a photo of the woman all these years.

He was returning to France ahead of the 75th anniversary of the D-Day invasion and thought about his long-lost love, but assumed she had since passed away.

As luck would have it, Ms Ganaye, now Ms Pierson, was still alive, aged 92.

American WWII veteran KT Robbins and French Jeannine Ganaye share a kiss during a heartwarming reunion 75 years after leaving for D-Day.
The long lost lovers share a kiss during a heartwarming reunion. Source: Fox News

Armed with a photo, her name and the village she lived in, it didn’t take long to track her down.

The couple spent two hours together at the French nursing home where Ms Pierson now lives.

After 75 years they came together in an emotional reunion caught on camera. As Mr Robbins walks towards Ms Pierson, their eyes showed years of longing.

“I’ve always loved you. You never got out of my heart,” the WWII veteran told her.

“I always thought about him,” she told the cameras. “Thinking that maybe he was out there, maybe he would come.”

Pictures from the 1940s of American WWII vet KT Robbins and French sweetheart Jeannine Ganaye.
WWII vet KT Robbins and sweetheart Jeannine Ganaye from the 1940s. Source: Fox News

Mr Robbins showed his sweetheart the photo he kept of her for all these years while they were huddled in a heart-warming embrace.

When the pair had to leave each other again, they were crying at the reality of having to be apart.

"Greatest day of my life, I reckon," Mr Robbins told Fox News of the reunion.

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