Nation’s oldest WWII vet dies

Published 7:14 am Wednesday, May 4, 2016

<span class="R~sep~ACopyBody">Frank Levingston, formerly the nation’s oldest known World War II veteran, died Tuesday at a nursing home for veterans in Bossier Parish, according to family members. He was 110 years old.</span>

<span class="R~sep~ACopyBody">Levingston was born in 1905 in Cotton Valley, La. He was one of seven children growing up in north Louisiana. As an adult, he never married or had children of his own.</span>

<span class="R~sep~ACopyBody">Over 11 decades, Levingston lived through the Great Depression, saw 19 U.S. presidents come and go from the Oval Office, and spent a lengthy career in the U.S. Army.</span>

<span class="R~sep~ACopyBody">Levingston’s military background included time as a private during the Allied invasion of Italy in September 1943 during World War II.</span>

<span class="R~sep~ACopyBody">In 2014, Levingston said he spent a tour in North Africa, providing vehicles and ensuring the safe passage of needed supplies for Allied forces. He said his unit was one of the most highly rated supply units in the Army. He was honorably discharged in 1945.</span>

<span class="R~sep~ACopyBody">Levingston spent much of his life after the military as a union labor worker specializing in cement finishing.</span>

<span class="R~sep~ACopyBody">Over the last few years, Levingston became somewhat of a national hero. The notoriety came to a head in 2015 after his 110th birthday when news outlets across the world began running stories about his life.</span>

<span class="R~sep~ACopyBody">Levingston was invited by Washington, D.C., officials on a trip to honor his military career — billed as “the trip of a lifetime.” The visit consisted of a stop at the World War II Memorial on Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day and a visit to the White House.</span>

<span class="R~sep~ACopyBody">His last public appearance in Lake Charles was at a send-off at VFW Post 2130 to mark the trip to Washington, D.C.</span>

<span class="R~sep~ACopyBody">Levingston’s great-niece, Shannon Levingston-McCowan, and his nephew, Joseph Levingston, attended the ceremony and traveled to Washington.</span>

<span class="R~sep~ACopyBody">At the event, Shannon said Levingston’s hectic schedule as of late was due to him “going from a local celebrity to a national one.”</span>

<span class="R~sep~ACopyBody">Mayor Randy Roach, Calcasieu Parish Sheriff Tony Mancuso and District Attorney John DeRosier all spoke during the ceremony. Each discussed Levingston’s life and what it meant to Southwest Louisiana.</span>

<span class="R~sep~ACopyBody">Veterans from all over the parish were in the audience at the ceremony, including 84-year-old Charles Finney, who said he didn’t actually know Levingston. Similar to many of the other veterans and residents who spoke to Levingston over the last few months, he said he didn’t want to pass up the chance to show his respect.</span>

<span class="R~sep~ACopyBody">“The man is a miracle,” Finney said.</span>

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<p class="p1"><span class="s1">Follow J</span>ustin Phillips on Twitter at <a href="https://twitter.com/JustinAmPress">twitter.com/JustinAmPress</a>

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