By Kris Leonhardt
PORTAGE COUNTY – “The departure day was especially tearful because of the length of time the young couple would be separated. They had reached a point in their relationship where Bonnie hoped to be married but Bob wanted to wait until he knew where his final assignment would be. He yearned to go someplace that would be safe to bring Bonnie over to be with him,” writes Portage County author, Robert Rutta in “Love Letters from Two Wars.”

“Maybe Germany would be his last stop. While he was in transit they could not communicate with each other until he reached his final destination and was given an address. After two days of processing in New Jersey, Bob was flown to the Army Replacement Center in Frankfurt, Germany.

“At that point everything changed from what he thought would happen.”

In the recently-released memoir, Rutta chronicles the letters between a young couple during World War II.

“Two young lovers are separated when the young man is drafted to defend his country. In tender letters, their love is held together with hopes and dreams for their future. He fights in the Pacific Theater of War until the invasion of Japan and the end of WWII,” explains Rutta.

“History repeats itself 25 years later when his daughter is in the same situation and her boyfriend is drafted during the Cold War era. He becomes a key player in the Cold War as an undercover, top-secret decoder for a nuclear missile base while communism threatens European countries. Exchanging letters is all they have to keep their love and dreams alive.

“With their safety at stake, the men carried out their military jobs in hopes of returning home to their sweethearts. Their letters were saved and selected letters are included in this book to tell the stories of two generations of Americans living in momentous times.”

This is the sixth book for the retired teacher. The memoir looks at “the challenges of developing a relationship by two young couples during a wartime period of their lives.”

Rutta is also the author of “Unintentional Deception,” “A Secret Life Exposed,” and the “Summers with Ice” trilogy. Rutta’s books are available at amazon.com.