For several hours each day, Nick Avtges spent time with his wife at her nursing home.
Then, the coronavirus pandemic hit, forcing the home to shut down to visitors.
But Avtges, 88, of Watertown, found a way to continue visiting his wife, with their son’s help.
His friend arranged for a bucket crane to set up outside Maristhill Nursing and Rehabilitation Center in Waltham, Massachusetts, on Wednesday.
“A friend of mine from high school — he was like, ‘I can do this for you.’ I was like, ‘Oh my! Okay! That’s crazy!’” Chris Avtges recalled.
That crane lifted Avtges up to his wife’s room, where the two talked through a window.
“We touched each other through the screen,” he said. “Our fingertips touched.”
Avtges said he and his wife, Marion, 85, plan to take a vacation when the pandemic ends.
“We’ve been married 61 years, and love [each other] today as much as we did when we first met,” he said.
