In a normal year, Lawrence Brooks of New Orleans, Louisiana, would have celebrated his birthday at the National WWII Museum, but the novel coronavirus changed his plans.
Of course, the organization wasn’t about to let their oldest veteran’s big day go by unnoticed, so they brought the party to him instead!
During WWII, Lawrence was stationed in New Guinea and the Philippines alongside his fellow soldiers in the 91st Engineer Battalion. Not only did he go on to live a wonderful life, but he also made it way past his triple-digit milestone!
On September 12, the supercentenarian turned 111 years old! Rather than head to the museum for his typical birthday bash, he walked out onto his own front porch, where he was treated to all kinds of delightful surprises.
“It is such an honor to have the oldest living U.S. veteran of World War II living so close to our institution,” Amber Mitchell, one of the museum’s employees, told GMA. “And it was meaningful for us to continue to celebrate Lawrence Brooks and his incredible life in a safe manner this year.”
And celebrate they did! The museum treated Lawrence to “flyovers, a cake, and a personal performance from the Victory Belles.”
As if that wasn’t enough, he was also surprised with birthday cards! Knowing the celebration would look a little different this year because of COVID-19, the museum asked the public to send him letters in the months leading up to his big day. He ended up with nearly 10,000 of them!
Even better, his family was there to help him enjoy the big day, along with some of his neighbors and employees from the museum.
What an incredible way to honor someone who has lived through so much! Happy birthday, Lawrence!
Check out the epic flyover in the video below, and don’t forget to share this story with your friends.
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