An Idaho couple who reconnected after more than three decades apart has been named "America's Favorite Couple" in a national online competition that drew 200,000 entries.
Jennie and Bryan Drollinger first met at a high school dance in Alaska in 1985. They maintained their relationship through handwritten letters until 1989, when a disconnected phone line abruptly ended their young romance.
"We told each other we were gonna meet each other for lunch, and the next day I called and the phones disconnected," Bryan Drollinger said.
"It was disconnected because my roommate hadn't paid the phone bill for 3 months," Jennie Drollinger said.
WATCH | Meet the local couple who've been crowned 'America's Favorite Couple'!
Believing they had been ghosted by each other, the couple lost contact for 32 years. Both married other people, raised families, and eventually moved to Idaho.
Years later, a friend encouraged Bryan to contact Jennie, who worked as a paralegal, for help with a legal issue.
“I was like, OK, I'll help an old friend. And it was just a voice on the other side of the phone, another client until we met each other,” Jennie said.
The couple reconnected in 2021 and married a year later. Last month, they were crowned winners of the "America's Favorite Couple" competition powered by Colossal.
“I was a little emotional. I got a little teary-eyed, and I was like, at this moment, I am sitting here 40 years to the month that we met as teenagers and we're winning America's favorite couple contest,” Jennie said.
The Drollingers said they entered the competition to inspire others. The competition also raised $1.97 million for charities, including Oceana and the L.A. Food Bank, a cause that resonates with Jennie's personal experience.
"I'm thinking of the single mothers out there that are working 2 or 3 jobs just trying to put food on the table for their children," Jennie said. "I was a single mom, so that's really powerful to me to be able to help another woman provide for her child."
The couple won $20,000 and shared their relationship advice for others.
"Communicate clearly and don't let misunderstandings go, and don't be prideful, and I'm going to get you back, and I'm going to get you back. Yeah, there was a lot of that. Don't play games," Jennie said.
The Drollingers plan to use their prize money to turn their love story into a novel and screenplay.
