Last Doughboy Gets Presidential 'Thank You'

March 6, 2008 — -- Frank Buckles, 107, of Charlestown, W.Va., was honored in Washington today as the last remaining veteran to have served with American forces during World War I.

Buckles met with President Bush at the White House and was honored at the Pentagon as the last of nearly 5 million doughboys who served in the bloody conflict known as "the Great War" -- a war Buckles was so anxious to serve in that that the then-16-year-old fibbed about his age so he could join the Army.

He served as an ambulance driver in the United Kingdom and France.

Sitting in a wheelchair next to Bush in the Oval Office, Buckles heard the president praise his military service and longevity as a link to America's past and present.

"One way for me to honor the service of those who wear the uniform in the past and those who wear it today is to herald you, sir," Bush said, "and to thank you very much for your patriotism and your love for America."

Buckles came to the Pentagon to be part of a ceremony to accept a photo exhibit honoring the last remaining veterans of World War I.

In brief remarks to an auditorium full of military dignitaries that included chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Adm. Mike Mullen, Buckles said he was honored "to be your humble representative of World War I. ... It is an honor to be here to represent the veterans of World War I. I thank you."

Hard of hearing and with labored speech, Buckles later charmed Pentagon reporters many years younger than he by saying, "I don't feel any older than you are."

Buckles told reporters he was not surprised by his longevity because it seems to run in his family. Two of his cousins lived to be 100 and an aunt lived to be 104.

He drew chuckles when asked why he had lied about his age so he could join the Army. With a smile on his face he replied, "I didn't lie! Nobody calls me a liar. I may have increased my age."

He said he had yearned to be in the Army since he was a young teen, but he was only able to join the Army only after he had been rejected in earlier attempts to join the Marines and the Navy.