The last surviving veteran of World War One visits the Pentagon:
WASHINGTON (CNN) — Frank Woodruff Buckles was just 15 years old when he joined the U.S. Army. Soon, he was deployed to war and headed overseas on the Carpathia — the same ship used in the rescue mission of the Titanic.
He drove ambulances in Britain and France for soldiers wounded during World War I.
A few decades later, Buckles was in the Philippines as a civilian, on December 7, 1941, the day Japan attacked Pearl Harbor. He was taken as a prisoner of war for 39 months in Manila, eating his meals out of a single tin cup.
More than 60 years later, he still clings to that cup, the one that sustained his life. Weathered with age, the cup has flecks of white paint chipped off. He keeps it as a reminder of his sacrifice for the country he so loves. He also still has his dog tags.
At age 107, there’s not much the war veteran, POW and West Virginia farmer hasn’t seen. But this week, this quietly accomplished man was humbled.
Buckles, the last known surviving World War I U.S. veteran, met the president of the United States and received a standing ovation at the Pentagon.
“I didn’t lie; nobody calls me a liar,” he said with a chuckle, referring to how he became a soldier at just 15.
Speaking with a hushed, deep voice, he conceded, “I may have increased my age.”
I’ve long thought that World War One ranks among the most pointless wars in American history, but Frank Buckles deserves commendation for his service to our country and as a representative of all the men who died on the fields of France.
March 14th, 2008 at 5:54 pm
[...] is one remaining American veteran of World War One. His name is Frank Buckles, and he recently visited the Pentagon. [...]