Love is in the air!
For his final act of kindness, an elderly dog with epilepsy and a mild heart murmur played matchmaker for his mom in a twist of fate that had them seeking a private flight across the Atlantic Ocean.
California native Adri Pendleton, 29, had been living in Amsterdam with her Dutch partner of six years and her dogs Nelly and Loki when the couple’s relationship came to an end — forcing her to move back to the US.
But Nelly, a border collie who had been part of Pendleton’s family since she was a teen, was too big to travel in the cabin on an international flight with her — unlike Loki — and Pendleton couldn’t bring herself to put the pup in cargo.
After much deliberation, Pendleton realized the only way to get the 15-year-old canine back home with her to the States was to find a private charter.
The dog mom started a GoFundMe and reached out to her dog Loki’s 25,000 followers for help.
“The videos went semi-viral,” Pendleton told PEOPLE.
Pendleton’s emotional pitch struck a chord with German pilot Niklas Stoeterau, 26.
“I felt quite touched and left a comment that I might be able to help with bringing Nelly back to the US,” Stoeterau told the publication.
Stoeterau had been living in Hamburg at the time and knew he’d be able to take Nelly to New Jersey as a guest at a discounted price thanks to his job.
Pendleton was apprehensive at first — not knowing whether the kind stranger was truly trying to help or take advantage of her situation.
But Pendleton and Stoeterau texted back and forth for almost two months to work out the travel plans before the pair finally met at about 1 a.m. at a Milan airport.
Over the next 15 hours, including one layover, the pilot and passenger got to know each other a little deeper.
“It was just something about her. We could talk about the most random stuff and it just feels easy,” Stoeterau said.
Nelly also turned out to be a fan of the airman.
“You’d think she would be a bit shy or not too fond of strangers, but we got along very well through the whole flight,” he told People.
After parting in Newark, New Jersey in January, Pendleton and Stoeterau couldn’t get each other off their minds.
“A couple of days after the flight, I said ‘You’re very impressive. If you keep this up, I’m going to invite you to California and take you on a date,’” Pendleton said.
Stoeterau said that he was glad she made a move.
“I mean, it was clear that we were both interested in each other.”
By March Stoeterau was meeting Pendleton’s family and the pair have been together ever since despite the distance.
Sadly Nelly isn’t around to see Stoeterau and Pendleton’s love grow after passing away just over a month after being in California.
Pendleton called him her “ultimate wingman.”
