Man Builds Covered Bridge With Pink Roof To Honor His Late Wife

An elderly man built and dedicated a covered bridge to his late wife after she passed away from breast cancer after 50 years of marriage.

Larry Payne and his wife Pat were married for over 50 years and had a beautiful life together. They raised children and grew old together.

Sadly, Pat passed away from breast cancer in April of 2013.

Knowing he wanted to do something to honor her, Larry began brainstorming ways he could help his local community and honor his late wife at the same time. That’s when he decided to build a covered bridge over a small creek that runs through the Bushnell Township Cemetery in Illinois.

With the help of some friends, Larry made the bridge a reality.

In an interview with KHQA, Larry explained that he put his “heart and soul into it” and created a beautiful covered bridge with a striking feature: a pink roof.

The roof has caught the attention of many who visit the cemetery and Larry is often asked about the color. Larry told the news outlet, “Had a lady the other day say, ‘Well I don’t like the pink. And I said, ‘Well, maybe you just don’t understand that pink is the cancer is what that means.’”

Larry is confident that his wife would love the bridge as much as he does. He said, “You know she’s smiling. I know she’s smiling. And she had one of the prettiest smiles…that’s what I said. I love my wife and there’s nobody that loves anybody anymore than I do her.”

Check out the touching video below. (You may want to grab some tissues beforehand!)