Octogenarian newlyweds to make aliyah
Elderly Florida couple who met online realize lifelong dream by moving to Israel
A living proof that age is nothing but a number, a newlywed octogenarian couple is expected to make aliyah next week.
Jay and Lina Padgug, ages 85 and 82, both widowers, got a second chance at love when they met on JDate. The two tied the knot two years ago, and recently decided to make an old dream come true by moving to Israel.
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The two say that love kept them young and gave them the courage to do what they had planned on doing their entire lives. On Tuesday they are expected to finally get their passports stamped at Ben Gurion Airport, along with 400 other migrants arriving on a flight sponsored by Nefesh B’Nefesh, the Ministry of Immigrant Absorption and the Jewish Agency.
The couple, both PhDs, plan on setting up a homestead in Modiin. They are to study Hebrew and travel the country in their spare time.
Jay said that his son had reservations about the couple's decision to move to the Jewish state, but eventually acknowledged that his father "is old enough to make his own decisions."
Jay and Lina noted that they are nervous and excited ahead of the move, but find it comforting that they will spend the rest of their lives in Israel.
"They prove that it is never too late to make meaningful and wonderful decisions in life," Erez Halfon, vice chairman of Nefesh B’Nefesh, said.
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