Fort Worth (WBAP/KLIF)- For James McNair and Elizabeth Leamon, love struck when they least expected it. The setting wasn’t on a moonlit beach or a romantic restaurant – it was on the Trinity Railway Express platform at Bell Station.
James and Beth first became acquainted in June of 2015 while waiting on the TRE to commute to work. He traveled to Forth Worth while she was headed to Dallas. Being a passenger for many years, Beth always had “her spot” on the platform and was familiar with the usual morning crowd. One morning, she noticed someone different was waiting nearby. James did not catch her eye, and for several mornings they didn’t speak.
“I would always get there early and would stand on the platform and I noticed someone different standing there,” said Beth. “But the next day I noticed he was standing closer to be but It was days before he spoke to me,” she said.
When they began conversing, it was casual and friendly. After several weeks of morning conversations, romance began to bloom and a growing fondness was evident. They started arriving even earlier (like 5:30 a.m.) for their scheduled departure and would bring each other treats.
“One morning she brought me breakfast and I think I brought her cake the next day and we could tell we were becoming fond of each other,” said McNair.
James mentioned that his birthday was Aug. 1, and Beth took the opportunity to ask him out to dinner for his birthday.
“We just had the same interests we liked the same music so I started asking him personal things like do you have a girlfriend are you married but he never asked me out,” said Leamon. “He mentioned his birthday was coming up so I said well he’s about to get away, he seems like a pretty good guy so I figured I would ask him out for his birthday,” she said.
That August night changed their lives forever; they had a romantic dinner and confessed their love for one another.
“So every birthday is also the anniversary of the time we’ve been together so we would go to the train station every year. We still go there every time,” said McNair.
The Bell platform holds a special place in their hearts. A simple train station has become so much more for them. Last October, James got down on one knee and proposed in the very same spot where the two met one morning on their commute to work.
It’s fitting that the couple met at “Bell” because now “wedding bells” are in the air.
“We are both older people. I’m in my early 60’s she’s in her 50’s. It’s never too late, you never know when or where it might happen when you least expect it or least equipped for it,” said McNair. “Never close the door on the idea of finding love at any point in your life” he said.
The couple will exchange vows on the platform on Sunday, October 17th.
