They met and fell in love before World War II, then married in 1946 after Karl’s return from the war, where he served on the USS Euryale in the Pacific theater. Together they raised three children in their New Hyde Park, New York, home.

On January 27, they died within 10 hours of each other at the apartment they shared in an assisted living facility in Glen Clove, New York.

Ruth, 92, a retired librarian, died first at 8 a.m. William, 97, a World War II veteran and retired purchasing manager, died 10 hours later, though he was the more seriously ill of the two, says their daughter, Marie Bauer, 64.

“I think my dad was holding on because he didn’t want to leave her behind,” she tells PEOPLE. “My father was very, very protective —just very devoted to her. I think he was holding on because he just didn’t want her to be alone.”

A wake was held for the couple on Friday followed by funeral services Saturday.

“The wake helped give us back a sense of their whole lives rather than those last few years, which I think is a tremendous gift,” she says.

The couple was buried together in a single grave at the Long Island National Cemetery, a resting place for veterans, in Pinelawn, New York. Her nephew played Taps, says Marie says her nephew played Taps, a bugle call sounded at military funerals.

“The Navy Honor Guard presented us with a flag, which was very heartbreaking and very lovely,” she says. “It was a sad and very, very lovely day.”

While it’s difficult to lose your parents so close together, Marie says she finds comfort in knowing they are together.

“When my husband died it really cut short our dream of living a really long life and dying together,” she says. “And so seeing this for my folks is such a gift. They promised ’till death do us part and death parted them for about 10 hours — and they were together again forever.”