Photo: Shari Small/WBZ NewsRadio
MANCHESTER, N.H. (WBZ NewsRadio) — Bill Rogers of Manchester, New Hampshire first met his late wife Natalie as freshmen in high school.
"I looked over and I spotted her. I couldn’t take my eyes off her," Rogers told WBZ NewsRadio. "And I walked over to her and I asked her if I could walk her home. We grabbed hands. But you know, we turned and looked at each other, we knew it was going to be forever."
Their high school romance turned into a marriage that lasted until Natalie's death in 2017. The couple had two children, four grandchildren, and eight great-grandchildren.
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"We had a great life together. A great life," Rogers said.
After Natalie died, Rogers wanted to honor her memory in an extraordinary way.
"I said, I gotta do something to keep her memories alive, ‘cause we had a lot of beautiful memories. So I said, guess what, I’ll jump out of an airplane," Rogers said.
Photo: Courtesy of Bill Rogers
Rogers, a 90-year-old Korean War veteran, skydives every year in honor of Natalie's memory. His sixth successful jump was Sunday.
"I love doing it, because I know I’m in her arms all the way to the ground," Rogers said.
When his feet are on the ground, Rogers also likes to get up early and walk nature trails, something he and Natalie used to do together.
"After she passed, I put a bench out at Massabesic Lake with her name on it, a place she used to like to stand," said Rogers.
WBZ's Shari Small reports.