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Couple With 53-Year Age Gap Are Doing Well After Contracting Covid-19

Couple With 53-Year Age Gap Are Doing Well After Contracting Covid-19

They tested positive last month but have now overcome their symptoms

Claire Reid

Claire Reid

The US age-gap couple who hit headlines in 2015 for their 53-year age difference are doing well after contracting Covid-19.

Gary Hardwick was just 17 when he met 71-year-old Almeda at her son's funeral, with the pair getting hitched two weeks later.

Gary arranged the marriage in six days for just $200 (£147). They first had sex on their wedding night, when Gary was 18.

Almeda has said of their relationship: "I wasn't looking for a young man, but Gary just came along. I just knew straight away that he was the one.

"Some family members thought Gary was far too young for me, and that I must be crazy. I told him I wasn't crazy, and that we loved each other."

Since then they've regularly shared glimpses into their lives on their @_garyandalmeda_ TikTok channel, and last month even launched an OnlyFans account, promising access to 'fully explicit content'.

In a post just after Christmas, Gary, now 22, told followers he and his wife, now 77, had tested positive for coronavirus and were isolating at home.

He said: "So the test came back positive. We do have Covid-19.

"We're in quarantine now for the next two weeks.

"We are only experiencing mild symptoms which is a blessing."

Instagram/Gary & Almeda

In an update, Gary thanked his followers for their support and reassured them he and Almeda were doing OK.

He said: "Almeda and are currently on day six of Covid-19 - since we first started having our initial symptoms and thank goodness they have all been mild symptoms.

"We have not run any fever; we have not had any trouble breathing. The worst for us just loss of taste, loss of smell, loss of appetite and the body aches."

He added: "We've been taking zinc and vitamin D and making sure we stay very well hydrated and very well-rested.

"Just, you know, relaxing and spending time together watching Netflix - making the best of it."


In an update posted yesterday (6 January), Gary confirmed the couple were now out of their isolation and their symptoms had gone, while thanking followers for their support and well-wishes while they were feeling unwell.

He said: "It's now day 10 for my lovely wife and I and we are over our symptoms finally - so, we are out of quarantine, thank goodness.

"We had to stay in quarantine for 10 days total, since the symptoms began.

"But I believe we had Covid longer than that. I do believe we had it for, like, three weeks but we just started to see the symptoms."

Featured Image Credit: Instagram/Gary & Almeda

Topics: US