Philadelphia Flyers

‘An Unexpected Friend,' 94-Year-Old Meets Pen Pal, a Flyers Exec, After Three Years

NBC Universal, Inc.

Separated by over 4,000 miles, two pen pals met for the first time after talking over the phone for nearly three years.

For Harvey Ballen, a Korean War veteran who traveled the world,  the pandemic shrunk his world to just one room inside a senior center in North Wales, Pennsylvania.

It was thanks to the Philadelphia Flyers Pen Pal Program that Ballen was paired with Valeria Camillo, president of business operations for the Flyers and the Wells Fargo Center.

“An unexpected friend in an unexpected place - a true blessing in my life,” Camillo said about Ballen.

Ballen and Camillo finally got the chance to meet in person on March 21, when Camillo flew to North Wales to see Ballen.

“I was shuttered in this room for two years, this was it, so I really looked forward to these calls,” Ballen said.

They would talk about politics and current events, topics that often divide people, yet brought these two closer.

“He would encourage me everyday, ‘this is bleak, but as a nation, we’re gonna get through this,’ and we did, and god willing we’re sitting here today,” Camillo said.

The Flyers Pen Pal Program connects its employees with residents at the Abramson Senior Center in North Wales.

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