28-Year-Old Woman Shares How She Became Best Friends With A 98-Year-Old Man
The pair formed an unbreakable bond, proving that age transcends friendship.
fizkes | Shutterstock For most people, their circle of friends is a group of people in the same peer group — everyone is about the same age.
That's not to say people from different generations can't find reasons to connect, however. Take one woman's unlikely friendship that has melted the hearts of people around the world.
The two besties, ages 28 and 98 (almost 99!), met nearly a decade ago and have kept in touch ever since, building lasting memories with one another.
The 28-year-old woman, Aoife Malone, shared how she became best friends with a 98-year-old man named Tommy.
Malone and Tommy’s story began nine years ago when Malone was 19 and studying fashion in Scotland.
“A girl’s gotta eat, and the job opportunities were limited, so I started working in a bookies,” Malone shared in a viral TikTok video.
While working at the betting site, she met an 89-year-old man named Tommy, who became a regular customer.
“Tommy would come in multiple times a day,” Malone explained. “It was obvious he was really lonely. His wife had died the year before, and he was coming into the bookies for some company.”
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After encountering Tommy multiple times at work, Malone asked if she could join him for bingo one night — with three of her friends tagging along since they were wary about her meeting a man alone at night.
Thankfully, they quickly realized that Tommy was harmless, and he later became “the talk of the town” after "walking into the bingo with four young ones on his arm."
The woman said that night at bingo sparked the beginning of a monumental friendship.
Tommy would stop by her workplace a few times a week and invite her for dinner. Other times, the pair would see a movie together at the local cinema (or, as Tommy called it, the pictures).
As their friendship progressed, Tommy modeled for one of Malone's university projects and taught her how to drive — she even passed her road test using his car!
A year after starting college, Malone and her friends moved to Edinburgh and commuted to school. Tommy often picked them up from the station and drove them to campus during the week.
“He became good friends with all of my friends and we’d take him out for dinner, watch the six nations at his house, and even have a surprise birthday party for him one year,” Malone shared.
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While she was living in Edinburgh, Malone and Tommy would meet up several times a week for dinner or a show. He met her family and even attended her college graduation as her mother’s plus one!
Shortly after graduating, Malone accepted a job offer in New York City, far away from Tommy in Scotland.
“We spent our last night sitting on a bench in St. Andrews Square in Edinburgh sharing earphones and listening to Frank Sinatra,” she shared. “I wasn’t sure how long I’d be in America so I was scared I wouldn’t see him for years and I’d say he felt the same.”
Once she arrived in New York, Malone called Tommy every day to check in on him. However, the COVID-19 pandemic swept the world, making Tommy feel even more lonely and isolated.
With his birthday coming up, Malone took to her Instagram to tell her followers about her friendship with Tommy and his upcoming birthday. She called on them to send him birthday cards to make him smile — and the Internet delivered!
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“He received thousands of cards, presents, and cakes from people all over the world," Malone shared. "School children sent him letters as a project set up by their teachers."
Soon afterward, Malone moved back to Scotland with her boyfriend Anton, who got to meet Tommy for the first time.
Nine years after they met, the woman reflected on how much she and Tommy had conquered together.
“He was in World War II and has some amazing stories. He’s a big feminist who really doesn’t understand the world we live in now and how it’s gotten so dark,” she said.
“He helped me through breakups, [expletive] jobs, and uni stresses," she continued. "Over the years, he’s taught me a lot. And I taught him how to do the peace sign!”
Malone and Tommy remain close to this day and are preparing to celebrate his 98th birthday! While he currently resides in assisted living, Malone is happy to report that he is just as sharp as he was the day they met, and she still sees him a few times a week!
If the unlikely duo can teach us anything, it's that age transcends friendship.
Don’t assume that just because someone is older or younger than you, you won’t be able to connect with them. No matter how many years are between you, it is still possible to share interests, goals, and values.
Not only that but having friends from different age groups improves your life in a variety of ways. An AARP study found that 61% of people with much older friends are more open-minded and have the ability to see the world from different perspectives. And apparently, the benefit goes both ways. Perhaps that's the true secret to overcoming the divided times we live in — intergenerational friends.
True friendship comes down to support and trust, whether that means providing a listening ear, celebrating achievements, or supporting one another through challenges — none of which are dependent on your birth year.
Megan Quinn is a writer at YourTango who covers entertainment and news, self, love, and relationships.