A Louisiana man who is the oldest living World War II veteran in the United States has marked his 112th birthday.
FILE - In this Sept. 12, 2019 file photo, World War II veteran Lawrence Brooks holds a photo of him taken in 1943, as he celebrates his 110th birthday at the National World War II Museum in New Orleans. Brooks celebrated his 112th birthday, Sunday, Sept. 12, 2021 with a drive-by party at his New Orleans home hosted by the National War War II Museum. Drafted in 1940, Brooks was a private in the Army’s mostly Black 91st Engineer Battalion.
Lawrence Brooks celebrated Sunday with a drive-by party at his New Orleans home hosted by the National World War II Museum, The Times-Picayune/The New Orleans Advocate reported. He also received greetings from Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards, who tweeted, “Mr. Brooks, the entire state of Louisiana thanks you for your service and we all wish you a joyous birthday.”pandemic has caused those events to shift to drive-by celebrations for the past two years.
This year’s festivities included a Jeep parade, a live performance from the museum vocal trio and entertainment from New Orleans musicians. The city also recognized Brooks’ birthday with an official proclamation. Born in Norwood, Louisiana, in 1909, Brooks has lived in New Orleans since 1929. Drafted in 1940, he was a private in the Army’s mostly Black 91st Engineer Battalion, a unit that was stationed in New Guinea and the Philippines and built infrastructure such as bridges, roads and airstrips., Brooks also described how he was delivering a load of barbed wire to the front when one of the engines of the C-47 he was traveling in went out.
After they dumped the barbed wire to conserve weight, he made his way to the cockpit. He told the pilot and co-pilot that since they were the only two with parachutes, if they had to jump for it, he was going to grab on to one of them.
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Oldest US veteran of WWII celebrates his 112th birthdayNEW ORLEANS (AP) — A Louisiana man who is the oldest living World War II veteran in the United States has marked his 112th birthday. Lawrence Brooks celebrated Sunday with a drive-by party at his New Orleans home hosted by the National World War II Museum, The Times-Picayune/The New Orleans Advocate reported.
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Oldest US veteran of WWII celebrates his 112th birthdayNEW ORLEANS (AP) — A Louisiana man who is the oldest living World War II veteran in the United States has marked his 112th birthday. Lawrence Brooks celebrated Sunday with a drive-by party at his New Orleans home hosted by the National World War II Museum, The Times-Picayune/The New Orleans Advocate reported.
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