Couple married 62 years died hours apart

BAKERSFIELD, CA (KTRK) -- A California couple married for 62 years died just the way they lived, together. Their story reads like a Hollywood movie, but their love was real.

Don and Maxine Simpson met in a bowling alley decades ago, and married a few years later. They traveled the world, played active roles in their community and adopted two boys along the way. Married almost 62 years, everything was done together.

"He adored my grand-mother, loved her to the end of the earth," said their granddaughter Melissa Sloan.

A couple of weeks ago, Don fell and broke his hip. He was hospitalized, but his family says his health was quickly declining. Maxine had battled cancer for years, and about the same time, her disease progressed.

The family didn't want to keep the husband and wife apart, so they moved them into a spare bedroom, with beds side by side.

"And grandma woke up and saw him, and they held hands and they knew that they were next to each other," Sloan recalled. "I knew in my heart, before I even got there, this is what's supposed to happen. Grandma and grandpa are supposed to be together and grandma and grandpa are going to die together."

And that's exactly what happened.

Maxine passed away first, and when her body was taken away, that was the end for Don.

"I walked them out with her body walked back in to check on grandpa and he quit breathing. As soon as her body left the room, he left with her," Sloan explained. "And they passed four hours apart from each other. ... It's just amazing, it really is amazing. It's a true love story."