A dying military hero’s final wish was to earn a high school diploma, so his friends worked for months to make his dream come true. A school official was able to make it happen just three days before his death.
Richard “Gunny” Remp dropped out of high school just shy of graduation so he could fight in World War II. He then went on to fight in Korea and then Vietnam, never returning to complete his senior year, but always wishing he had.
At 98, Richard was diagnosed with stage 4 cancer, and he admitted to his friends that his dying wish was to hold his diploma in his hands. They contacted the school board from his hometown of Sharon, PA, hoping he could earn an honorary diploma. The board agreed to help.
Before officials could get Richard his diploma, his health took a turn for the worse. He moved to hospice care and was no longer strong enough to travel home. When his friends left a message for Sharon City School District Superintendent Justi Glaros telling her it was too late, she called them back with good news.
“She’s like, ‘I’m printing his diploma now. ‘I’ll be there in 4½ hours,’” Julien Singh, commander of the American Legion post in Poolesville, told The Washington Post.
“To me, four and a half hours wasn’t far at all to be able to honor Mr. Remp,” Justi said, per WKBN 27.
“It was sort of like out of a Hallmark movie. These things, you don’t see these things happen every day, and it was incredible to see it unfold in front of your eyes,” Julien added.
School Board Official Made it Just In Time To Grant Hero’s Last Wish
Justi arrived in time to present the military hero with his final wish. With friends and family gathered around, he held his high school diploma just as he always hoped.
“When I got there, it was all rather surreal,” Justi continued. “I was nervous because I felt like I was meeting a rock star… Here’s this man who’s a highly decorated veteran who really had from the age of 17, given his entire life to serve our country and to protect our freedoms.”
Richard Remp passed away three days later. Sharon High School will honor the vet with a moment of silence during its graduation ceremony next month.
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