Fifty minutes of stories of his service during WWII. Well worth the time if you haven't seen it.
He completed 97 combat missions flying a P-47 and was highly decorated. Among other recognition, he received the Distinguished Flying Cross and 16 Air Medals.
These brave heroes are slowly slipping away, we lost Charles in 2015 at age 92. Glad it is being documented for posterity at what cost our freedom comes.
Endeavor to persevere.
October 31, 2019, 06:08 AM
downtownv
How Many World War 2 Veterans are Still Alive in 2019? In World War 2, 16 million Americans served in the armed forces and according to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, less than 500,000 U.S. World War 2 veterans are still alive today. That’s only around 3% of them, and as their age increases, it’s likely that their death rate will continue to increase as well, with an estimated 348 deaths per day.
Do the math and that means in less than five years, even the oldest World War 2 veteran will no longer be around. Currently, the oldest World War 2 veteran is Gustav Gerneth of Germany coming in at an astounding 113 years old.
Even the most celebrated U.S. World War 2 veterans have recently started to pass on. Most notably, Richard Overton, who was honored by President Obama for Veteran’s Day and witnessed everything from Pearl Harbor to Okinawa to Iwo Jima, died in December 2018 at the age of 112.
Following Overton’s death, Lawrence Brooks is now thought to be the oldest surviving World War 2 veteran at 109 years old, but the final days of World War 2 veterans are fast-approaching. So, we must do our best to ensure their legacies remain.
Just wow,The greatest generation sure went thru a lot for us. Makes me sick to have to hear them trying to take this country down
October 31, 2019, 12:01 PM
SgtGold
The matter of fact delivery of even the most dangerous experiences is a testament as to how the greatest generation handeled adversity. The ice cream story reminds me of just how field expediant you can get when you really want something. Improvise, adapt, overcome.
_____________________________ 'I'm pretty fly for a white guy'.
October 31, 2019, 07:18 PM
c1steve
Yes, a great and moving video. The current crop of young people does not have a clue.