Tuesday, April 29, 2014

Richard Overton, The Celebrated Veteran

By Eloise Hewitt


The veteran is one of the few living individuals that took part in the Second World War.Richard Overton was born in 1906 in Texas, a place he has lived many years after he left the military.

The centenarian remembers the horrors of the war that include seeing his comrades fall in battle. Richard reveals that the horrors of the war remain permanently imprinted in his brain. The veteran also confesses their great joy when they came home temporarily and the difficulty of going back to the battle field. He says it took great courage and sacrifice on their part. However, he is still glad that he joined the military.

In past few days, Overton has been a busy man, appearing in different places across the country. Meeting high profile persons has been part of his experience. He had an unique privilege to meet president Obama in the white house during the veterans day. The president lauded him for his role in the war. For him this was a dream come true since he had longed for this opportunity. Also among his encounters is with the governor of Texas.

However, it still remains controversial whether the centenarian was present during the attack on the Pearl Harbor. A statement by Obama suggests he saw all the action at the Pearl Harbor. However records of this remain scanty.

He gained public attention in an interview on how he would spend his memorial day. The centenarian said he would prefer to smoke cigars and drink whisky which is stiffened with coffee during this special day. He however remains awake to the fact that there are lots of people who would want to do something for him on this day but maintains he would love it this way. Overton took a job in a furniture selling business in Texas before shifting gears to be a state employee in the department of treasury in Texas.

His service to his country was recognized by the mayor of Austin who described him as an extraordinary man.Overton took the opportunity to advise the young generation to become active in different physical activities instead of spending all their time watching.Together with his fellow veterans Overton has had an opportunity to tour the memorial of Martin Luther King. This visit was sponsored by Honour Flight. This is an organization that has and continues to facilitate the visits of veterans to different memorials as a way appreciating their significant contribution to society.

Surprisingly, despite being one hundred and seven years, Mr. Richard can drive and comfortably walk around. In fact he generally appears healthy. This longevity, he says, is out of ensuring physical fitness and also taking whiskey.

This memorial is however not going to be business as usual for this centenarian . All the friends his friends especially those from his platoon have passed on. The veteran admits that this for a number of times been a source of loneliness since he lacks a person he can talk to like he was used to with them. Richard has had two wives the last one having passed on twenty two years ago and has no children.




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