HALLOWELL, Maine (NEWS CENTER) -- Valentine's Day can be awfully lonely for people who don't have someone to celebrate with. And finding a date gets even more complicated after the age of 40. But one woman in the Midcoast decided that just because she was single, didn't mean she couldn't go out and have a good time. And she's found a lot of kindred spirits, too.
5 years ago, Stephanie Russell found herself newly single, over the age of 40, and wondering how she could meet people her age. She had signed up for match.com, and got an idea. She realized she could see the profiles of both men and women in her area. What if she just invited a whole group out for a mixer? That first mixer at the Newcastle Pub was more successful than she could have ever imagined. "We've turned into a group that's just there for each other," Russell said.
Russell sends out emails every week or two of things with activities that people in the group might be interested in. She says about 200 people receive the emails, and there are a couple dozen people who regularly go out.
And yes, Russell says she's been responsible for 6 couples meeting, including one that got married. David Pierce and Jane Vickers met on the first night. Russell hadn't invited Pierce on Match, but she ran into him at the Newcastle Pub right before the mixer and told him to join them. He was her high school sweetheart. And that night, she introduced him to his wife. "David's big thing is, 'You were my first love; she is my last.' And I'm like, 'OK. I'm OK with that.'"
But while the group started as a way to find love, Russell says it's really become an excuse to get out and have fun. "I gotta give Match credit," she said. "It hasn't given me a match, but it's given me all of them."
Since the Midcoast group formed, there is now a Portland group and a hiking group. If you're interested in getting involved with any of them, you can send an email to singleheartsinmaine@gmail.com or you can visit the Single Hearts in Maine Facebook page.