NEW ORLEANS (AP) — A Louisiana man who is the oldest living World War II veteran in the United States has marked his 112th birthday. Lawrence Brooks celebrated Sunday with a drive-by party at his New Orleans home hosted by the National World War II Museum.
Festivities included a Jeep parade, a live performance from the museum vocal trio and entertainment from New Orleans musicians. Drafted in 1940, Brooks was a private in the Army’s mostly Black 91st Engineer Battalion.
The unit was stationed in New Guinea and the Philippines and built infrastructure such as bridges, roads, and airstrips.
