5/13/2008 - My Turn: Reality Writes What Hollywood Can't
by Pavel Slepicka
The Journal-News
You know, I’m actually going to credit Ed Millhorn and Maria Elena “Mili” Querejazu for the outstanding break in the weather we had last weekend.
After what seemed like a never-ending stream of rain showers and cold winds, the crazy weather (even for Illinois) finally broke and gave us a couple days of revitalizing sun and warmth just in time for their American wedding.
Of course, the weather was only part of how beautiful Saturday, May 17, was for the town of Hillsboro.
That evening, overlooking Lake Hillsboro from the deck of the country club, Ed and Mili repeated their vows for family and friends who were unable to attend their first ceremony in La Paz, Bolivia, in January.
Mili (pronounced ME-lee) was an American Field Service (AFS) Exchange Student for Jim and Mardell Donham during the 1970-71 school year, and she and Ed had their first date after a baseball game he played in.
From that point on, this storybook romance took on a life that even the best writers in Hollywood can’t seem to get just right.
After being together for a couple months into mid-summer 1971, Mili had to return home to Bolivia as her time as an exchange student was up.
“There was no real break-up,” said Ed. “It was just like I woke up one morning and she was gone.”
Fortunately for the pair, they did have each others address and were able to write letters for several years before the communication faded off.
Unfortunately, it would often take a month or more for a letter to get one way making each of their written conversations very valuable.
For many years, mailboxes stayed empty of their correspondences, but that didn’t mean memories were forgotten or lost.
“I kept all the letters packed away together,” said Ed. “Every once in a while over the years I’d run across them.”
Finally, when the internet started to become mainstream, Ed began a search that, even he admits, was a bit extreme.
“She was the type of woman you put on pedestal,” he said. “She was beautiful, funny, graceful. I never thought I’d see her again and I had to know what happened to her. I never thought I’d see her again.”
After off-and-on searching for nearly 10 years with little success, Ed caught a break when he sent a message to one of the various addresses he came up with from doing his internet search.
The message was a simple question: “Is this my friend who went to Hillsboro High School in 1971?”
That was May 20, 2005, and while Mili’s reply was a bit humorous and embarassing (I promised Ed I wouldn’t tell that story), he had found the woman who had been on his mind for the previous 34 years. Through e-mails and chat services, they never lost touch again.
It was fun watching them as they were getting the final details ready for their second wedding. Quick kisses and small walks across the yard while holding hands and laughing made them appear like teenagers again. Of course, I’m sure they will always feel that way in their hearts.
Republished with permission. This article was originally published here.
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