John Jacobson was moved to tears when he saw children lined up and waving flags along Highway 225 in Point Clear, Ala., outside a school as a tribute to his father, John “Jack” Jacobson, who passed away April 13, the eldest WWII veteran in the United States.
The service was at Alabama State Veterans Cemetery in Spanish Fort.
Tears fell from his eyes when they drove by the school and all the children were there waving flags, he told Local 15 TV News.
Jackson signed up in 1940 and was transferred to England four years later to assist in the preparation for the invasion of France, according to AL.com in Alabama. In Gen. George Patton’s Third Army, he served as quartermaster for two years. In 1953, he detached from the Army Reserve.
He and his wife, Georgia, relocated to Missouri in 1962 to close a family-owned packing plant. Instead, he enlarged and moved it to Liberal, Kansas, reads his obituary. He became CEO of National Beef and chairman of the board of Idle Foods, Inc. Under Jackson’s leadership, Idle Foods became a Fortune 500 business.
After retiring in 1986, he moved to Florida, then Alabama living in Point Clear. An enthusiastic golfer, Jackson also participated in numerous community activities. He was often heard to say another day of life is an additional day to serve.
He used every opportunity to be around young people. Jackson realized what he represented, and he knew the standards he wanted to pass on to the younger generation, explained Janet Cobb, director of Battleship Park, where Jacobson was a regular visitor. What a blessing he was to them and what a blessing that he was able to live his life with fulfillment to the end.
He worked in veterans events alongside Dr. Barry Booth, a Vietnam vet, and talked with school children concerning the Second World War, ArmyTimes reported.
Jacobson was a local hero who influenced the lives of thousands of persons, Booth said.