Woman who started writing to a prisoner to ease her loneliness after three family members died reveals they’re now engaged – and says their relationship saved her from suicide
- Laura Belmer, from New York, lost her mother, father and sister within five years
- Friend suggested she contact Stephen, 29, who was in jail in upstate New York
- Unlikely pair began sending letters in December 2018 and were engaged in June
A woman who felt like she ‘didn’t have anyone’ after losing three family members in five years was convinced to write letters to a ‘lonely’ incarcerated man – and the pair are now engaged.
Laura Belmer, 30, from New York, confessed she ‘felt completely alone’ and even considered taking her own life after she lost her mother, father and sister in a short space of time.
But her life took an unexpected turn in December 2018, when her closest friend suggested she start writing to Stephen – who had been incarcerated in upstate New York for three years.
Laura, who lives in Staten Island and is choosing not to reveal what Stephen is in prison for, said: ‘I felt completely alone. My friend said that Stephen was also feeling very alone and she thought we might be able to help each other.’
Laura Belmer, 30, from New York, was convinced to write letters to ‘lonely’ incarcerated man Stephen (pictured together) after she lost her mother, father and sister in five years
‘She thought that building a friendship with him might help me with the depression I was feeling.’
In December 2018, Laura wrote her first letter to Stephen, 29.
The pair would learn about each other through questions Laura would find in self-help books, which she would answer then send to Stephen to do the same.
As they continued their correspondence, an unlikely romance blossomed.
‘Getting those letters was the only thing that made me feel alive,’ said Laura.
‘Without him I probably would have committed suicide. I felt like I didn’t have anyone… like everyone around me felt bad for me, but he didn’t act like he felt sorry for me. He kept it real with me.’
Laura confessed she ‘felt completely alone’ and even considered taking her own life after she lost her three family members in a short space of time
Pictured: Stephen proposes to Laura during one of her many prison visits in June last year
Laura explained she would wait for the mailman to arrive with Stephen’s letters – and she now keeps their past correspondence in two binders.
‘I have two binders of letters between us now, so there must be at least 100 of them,’ she said. ‘Some letters are five to six pages back and forth.’
By last June the pair were engaged, and in December Laura got a tattoo on her forearm which reads: ‘L&S forever.’
Four months later they began corresponding by email.
In Stephen’s first email to Laura, he wrote: ‘You’re my wife who can make anything work. So I’ll be waiting anxiously for your response.
‘Baby please stay strong with me out there OK? All of this is going to pass and be so worth it, and our life is going to be so beautiful when I come home to you.
‘Be my Queen forever and I’ll forever remain your King. I love you with everything in me – the most beautiful woman I’ve ever laid my eyes on. Write me back babe. 3-11-19 till forever…’
The pair would learn about each other through questions Laura would find in self-help books, which she would answer then send to Stephen to do the same
Laura visits Stephen every weekend or every other weekend (pictured), based on her work schedule
The pair soon began corresponding by email (pictured: Stephen’s first email to Laura) as it was ‘faster than a regular letter’
Laura visits Stephen every weekend or every other weekend, based on her work schedule.
She endures a six-hour drive to reach his prison, leaving Staten Island at midnight to arrive there at 6am in order to be the first visitor in line.
‘I’ve stood in snowstorms for him,’ admitted Laura, who does not own a car so Stephen pays for her to rent a vehicle for each visit.
‘The prison staff don’t let people in until 8 or 8:30am, at that point I get processed and go into the visiting area.
‘I get to see him for six hours and then I drive back home. We are able to hold hands but the correctional officers also let us kiss sometimes.
‘We have to sit across from one another but if I go with his mom I get to sit next to him.
Laura endures a six-hour drive to reach his prison, leaving Staten Island at midnight to arrive there at 6am in order to be the first visitor in line
In December, Laura got a tattoo on her forearm which reads: ‘L&S forever’ (Pictured: Laura’s tattoo)
‘On the days I can’t visit we speak on the phone for 30 minutes every day.’
They have taken dozens of photos in the prison together, which cost $2 each. The backdrops of the photos are painted by prison inmates, who also take the photos.
Laura said she cannot imagine herself without Stephen anymore.
‘He gave me a new family. His mother is so good to me as well as his sister and grandmother, and they talk to me everyday,’ she said.
‘I didn’t think about kids before, or a family, now we both want it so badly. It feels so right. I feel so grateful. I might not be here today if it were not for him.’
Laura hopes that sharing her unusual love story will inspire others in their times of need.
‘I want people to be more open minded about meeting other people and falling in love,’ she said.
Stephen will be released in 2023, or sooner if he is granted parole.
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