America’s Oldest World War II Veteran, Lawrence Brooks, Passes Away at 112

The United States’ oldest World War II veteran, Lawrence Brooks, passed away Wednesday at the age of 112 in his New Orleans home.

His daughter, Vannessa Brooks, told Military Times that his health had deteriorated in recent months, in which he was going to the local veteran’s hospital often. Though his health was declining, “he was still alert, enjoying the holidays and watching his beloved Saints play until the end,” Military Times reports.

Many have taken to social media to commemorate Brooks’s life and service to his county. Actor Gary Sinise, who played Lt. Dan in Robert Zemeckis’s 1994 blockbuster film Forrest Gump, tweeted a tribute to Brooks.

The National World War II Museum tweeted about Brooks’s passing.

Brooks’s beloved New Orleans Saints tweeted that the organization was “saddened to hear of” his death, adding, “He was a hero to us and a great supporter of our city and team.”

Brooks was born on September 12, 1909, in Norwood, Louisiana, and spent his early life in a small sawmill town on the outskirts of Stephenson, Louisiana. His family moved there “for work during the Great Depression,” according to Military Times.

He was drafted into the Army in 1940 and served in the 91st Engineer Battalion, which was “comprised of 1,193 Black enlisted soldiers and 25 white officers,” Military Times reports.

He spent time serving in Australia, New Guinea, and the Philippines as the engineering unit built roads, bridges, and airstrips.

On one occasion, Brooks was onboard a C-47 transporting barbed wire when one of the engines failed over an ocean. After they dropped the wire to lighten the plane, Brooks went to the front of the craft where the pilots were as they were the only ones with parachutes. He had planned to “grab onto” one of them if the plane went down.

“We made it, though,” he chuckled. “We had a big laugh about that,” he told the National World War II Museum. 

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When Brooks returned home from the war, he married and had five children with his wife. By the end of his life, he had “13 grandchildren and 22 great grandchildren,” Breitbart News previously reported.

On September 12 of last year, the World War II veteran celebrated his 112th birthday at his New Orleans home, which was a drive-by celebration organized by the National World War II History Museum. The museum typically hosted a party for Brooks in prior years, “but due to the coronavirus pandemic, the festivities were brought to his home for the past two years,” Breitbart News reported.

In a Facebook post, the museum said it “arranged a small, birthday celebration with cake, a performance from the Museum’s vocal trio, The Victory Belles, and a Jeep parade courtesy of Kajun Outcast Jeep Club and Northshore Wrangler Association.”

“The week before the celebration, Donald Remy, who is Deputy Secretary of Veterans Affairs, met with Brooks at the New Orleans Veterans Medical Center and the veteran had this advice for others: ‘Serve God and be nice to people,'” Breitbart News reported.