Frank Buckles, last known World War I Veteran passes away

We here at IllustrateMyLife.com want to pay tribute to and commemorate Mr. Frank Buckles, our country's last surviving veteran of World War I. Mr Buckles passed away in his sleep on Sunday February 27th at the age of 110. Mr. Buckles was one of only three known remaining World War I veterans still alive out of the more than 65 million world wide that served. Mr. Buckles lied about his age and enlisted in the Army at 15 years old. He had previously been turned away by the Marines and the Navy. After World War I Mr. Buckles went to work in the shipping business, which took him to South America as well as Asia. Ironically he was in Manila in 1941 and got caught up in the Japanese invasion of the Philippines. He subsequently spent 3 1/2 years as a prisoner of war. A lifelong Physical Fitness enthusiast, Mr. Buckles did 50 pushups every morning and kept a set of 3 and 4 pound dumbbells near his chair. Another passion later in life was the creation of a National World War I Memorial on the mall in Washington, D.C. He urged a Senate Committee in 2009 to refurbish an existing World War I memorial to Washington, D.C. troops and rededicate it as a national tribute. We at IllustrateMyLife.com applaud his efforts on behalf of all World War I veterans and we pledge our support to make this memorial a reality. Our country owes Mr. Buckles and all World War I veterans a debt of gratitude which can never be repaid.