Pen pals, both 80, meet for the first time after writing letters to each other for 68 years

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Sending and receiving a handwritten letter is viewed as old-fashioned today in a tech-advanced world. 

For two longtime best friends, it was their only way of communication for nearly 70 years. 

Patsy Gregory, 80, and Carol-Ann Krause, also 80, are two friends who have just met for the first time in person after they'd been writing letters to each other for 68 years. 

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The two women began writing letters at the age of 12 in 1955 after they each became "girl guides," each on a different side of the Atlantic, according to news service SWNS. 

When the women first began writing to each other, Krause lived in Buffalo, New York, while Gregory lived in Chorley, England. 

Carol-Ann Krause (left) and Patsy Gregory (right) are shown in South Carolina when Gregory traveled to America to meet her pen pal of 68 years.  (SWNS)

Gregory said the two would send letters back and forth, discussing their daily lives — and became quick friends. 

"We would write about what happened in the day, school, anything that was going on, where we were going, who we went out with," she told SWNS. 

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As the years went by, the two sent letters for the Christmas holidays, for wedding anniversaries and for much more.

Estimating that they'd each written about 400 letters to the other, the two women — who both became mothers of three — decided they should finally meet. 

Early letters between Carol-Ann Krause and Patsy Gregory — who were first brought together by the "girl guides" program in 1955 — were in ink and at one time even in pencil.  (SWNS)

Gregory always said she wanted to meet Krause before she turned 80.

Her daughter made it happen this summer, as SWNS reported. 

Gregory’s daughter, Steph Calam, reached out from the U.K. to Krause in the U.S. to share the idea of surprising her mother with a trip to America for her 80th birthday. 

Krause said she was all for it.

Letters from Carol-Ann Krause to Patsy Gregory from the 1960 and 1970s. (SWNS)

"I was more than happy to take her up on the offer," the now-resident of South Carolina said to SWNS. 

Patsy Gregory said she was thrilled to learn of the 10-day trip her family planned for her to visit Krause in America. 

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"It was an absolute shock to find out," she said to SWNS. 

"On my actual birthday, they presented me with a card with a flight to South Carolina."

In July, Krause traveled from England to the U.S. to spend time with Gregory in Conway, South Carolina. 

Krause (left) and Gregory (right) spent time talking and eating at Gregory's favorite spots while in South Carolina.  (SWNS)

The two said they recognized each other immediately thanks to the photos they'd been sending back and forth to each other over the decades.

Krause told SWNS how she felt on the day of Gregory’s arrival. 

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"I was emotional … a bundle of nerves," she said. 

Gregory said it felt familiar to be around Krause given all they shared over 68 years. 

Two pen pals who had been writing to each other for 68 years finally met in person in South Carolina ahead of their 80th birthdays.  (SWNS)

"It was just as though I’d seen her last week because we’d known each other for so long," she recalled.

Gregory told SWNS they talked for hours and went out to eat in the area. 

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"We did a lot of talking," she said. 

"We went out for quite a few different meals in places that Carol-Ann and her husband enjoyed going to."