A Letter From Fred from Green Shoe Studio on Vimeo.

Fred and Lorraine were married for 73 years; then in April, Lorraine passed away. Fred was 96. He had written one song in his life, about Branson, Missouri, and now he found himself writing another one – this time, about his wish to live his years with Lorraine all over again.

Less than a month after losing his wife, Fred noticed a songwriting contest being hosted by local Illinois music recording outfit Green Shoe Studio and decided to enter his song. The contest required YouTube uploads; Fred sent a manila envelope. This video tells what happened next.

“Sweet Lorraine” is now at number 9 in the iTunes Top 10, and Fred Stobaugh’s family has created a Facebook fan page for him. Click here to visit Fred’s page.

Like so many of the stories with unexpected endings that we’ve been able to tell on Senior Planet, this is a cross-generational one: It brings together an older man with deep experience of love and the capacity to write from the heart, and a younger man who had the imagination to help turn the contents of Fred’s manila envelope into a winning song.

For more great cross-generational stories, see:

What Ali Wore Goes Viral

91-Year-Old Cover Girl Graces Youthcentric Style Mag

Grandma lip-syncs to her favorite song