Richard Overton, oldest living WWII Vet to Meet with President
Last May while touring the Martin Luther King Jr. & World War II Memorials at the nation’s capital, Richard Overton wondered what it would take to meet President Obama.
Well it turns out that it took just one phone call and a flight back to D.C. to make Overton’s dream come true. Believed to be the oldest living World War II veteran, Overton is set to meet the POTUS today.
A member of the Army’s 188th Aviation Engineer Battalion, Overton was in his 30s when he volunteered for service in 1942 and saw combat while “island hopping” in the Pacific with an all-black unit, says Allen Bergeron, chairman of Honor Flight Austin, the Texas group that brings local veterans to Washington to tour the monuments. It was Bergeron’s group that arranged for Overton’s return trip to Washington.
On Monday, nearly 70 years after he returned from the Pacific, he’ll meet President Obama at the White House for breakfast before accompanying the president to Arlington National Cemetery for a Veterans Day ceremony, Bergeron said.
Overton got a hero’s reception when he arrived at Reagan National Airport on Sunday. The crowd surprised the veteran who said, “I didn’t think I was worth that much.”
Overton has been a widower for more than 22 years. He currently resides in Texas.
This is wonderful for so many reasons.
We are so happy that Mr. Overton will get a chance to fulfill his dream of meeting the president! Join us in congratulating Richard on all of his contributions to this country!