WWII Vet, 89, Bids Tearful Goodbye to 3-Year-Old Best Friend

GMA ^ | August 12, 2014 | YAZHOU SUN

[stevie_d_64]

A World War II veteran cried today as he said good-bye to his buddy - a 3-year-old boy who became his pal, but is moving away with this family.

“It’s going to be tough,” Erling Kindem, 89, said between tears while speaking to ABC News today.

Kindem's friendship with his next door neighbor Emmett Rychner, 3, in Farmington, Minnesota, became a heartwarming story that went viral.

But the boy is moving today to Northfield, Minnesota, and the veteran is moving with his ailing wife to a retirement center next month.

[stevie_d_64]

If this doesn’t melt you...Then I just don’t know anymore...

[Yaelle]

I’m not even going to read it, tears already. My dad, late stage alzheimers but still happy and sweet though nonverbal, adores my turning-three-tomorrow daughter, and my bro moved my parents across the country. I totally get it.

My beautiful dad always had a chaotic office, papers everywhere. He was known for it. But now he is obsessed with order, and lines up everything and can’t stand one thing out of place. My little girl loooooves to make messes of newspaper, toys, anything. So when we stay at their house, they are the perfect buddies. She makes the messes, he cleans them up. When he sees a picture of her he sometimes will say “my girl.” And he can’t always say what he wants to!

I think all senior homes should be next to preschools.

[PGR88]

It seems to be a natural progression of the true human spirit.

The older I get, the more I notice the innocence of children, and also the need to nurture, protect, and educate them.

[Little Bill]

Spot on, I had my six year old Grandson running all over my house asking tons of questions most of which I will answer when he is a few years older.

[hummingbird]

"I think all senior homes should be next to preschools."

------------------------->

I read an article years ago about such an arrangement. It worked out well for everybody.

Don't recall where it was or if any other such arrangements had been made.

It is a wonderful idea to keep trying.

[stevie_d_64]

I hope the kid grows up to remember this guy and what he did for this country...

Whether the kid decides to serve or not, I hope he understands the sacrifice and meaning of his and many others service to all of us...

He fought for us, so that some of us wouldn’t have to...

I believe there is a lesson there that transcends a lot of BS we are seeing today...

Maybe here in about 14-15 years this kid may enlist (or get an appointment to one of the service academies)...I hope someone remembers to do a follow up and reference this at that time...

What a time capsule that would be for this kid!!!

[longhorn too]

My dad died with Alzheimer’s in 2006. It was such a sad ordeal for over three years. It seems wrong to say this but he died from liver cancer which was a blessing. He lived for only 5 days after being diagnosed with cancer. He died in his sleep with my mother, brother and I with him around 9:30 am. Mother had been talking to him the entire night telling to it was alright to let go. She said he even smiled at her at one time, something he had done in months.