‘Better than I hoped’: Reunion of Hiawatha man, his German love now complete

Posted on Oct 26, 2009 by Meredith Hines-Dochterman.

David and Angela Dement, and Angela's daughter Amanda McGowan, pose for pictures in Wertheim, Germany after David and AngelaÕs wedding ceremony in July 2009. The couple first met in 1986 when he was an American soldier stationed in Germany. They reunited more than 20 years later when David found a book belonging to Angela and chose to return it. David moved to Germany from Hiawatha to live with Angela and her daughter last year. (Photo courtesy of Linda Wright)

David and Angela Dement finally have their happy ending.

The couple, who met in 1986 and reunited more than 20 years later, were married July 27.

“That’s it,” Angela, 44, said in a phone interview with The Gazette. “He’s trapped.”

David’s laugh could be heard over the line.

David, an American soldier, met Angela at a disco in Germany. The attraction was instant.

“Even 22 years ago, I talked about babies and families,” Angela said. “He was OK with the two of us, but he didn’t want all of that.”

The couple separated. David, 48, returned to the states. Angela married and had a daughter, Amanda, now 16. David never married or had children.

In December 2006, David found a German-English textbook of Angela’s. He didn’t throw it away. Instead, he looked for her. He didn’t know Angela, now divorced, was searching for him, too.

They reconnected by phone. Then David flew to Germany to visit Angela and meet Amanda.

And found his family.

David moved from Hiawatha to Wertheim, Germany, in April 2008, but the fairy-tale ending didn’t happen right away.

David needed a work permit to stay in the country. He needed a job to get a permit, but he couldn’t get a job without a permit.

Time ran out. So did David’s tourist status. He had to go back to Iowa.

Related: Book leads to couple’s reunion 21 years later

David’s work permit was approved the day after his departure. However, the couple was told to begin the process from scratch. That meant a 90-day delay before David could return.

Angela refused. She made phone calls. She wrote letters. She talked to anyone who would listen.

“She wouldn’t take ‘no’ for an answer,” said Ira “Tex” Dement of Dubuque, David’s father.

It worked. David returned to Germany three weeks after he left. He has a job working for the DURAN Group, a manufacturer of laboratory glass. He has a driver’s license and he’s learning the language.

And in July he married the only woman he’s ever trusted.

“People dream about stories like this,” said Linda Wright of Kenosha, Wis., David’s sister. “It was meant to happen. It just took awhile.”

The wedding ceremony, performed in both German and English, included the couple’s story, published in The Gazette on April 14, 2008.

“I was hoping it would turn out this way,” David said. “Actually, it’s better than I hoped.”