Our veterans have sacrificed so much for us so it is only natural that we feel the need to honor them and their service. Over 80 years after Pearl Harbor happened, we still have brave men and women who served the country at the time.
One such brave man was Jack Holder, who has now passed away at the age of 101 after recounting his incredible story many times.
Jack Holder was a survivor of Pearl Harbor. He was a World War II flyer who had completed over 11 missions in the Pacific and Europe. The veteran died at 101 years old in Arizona.
Darlene Tryon, a close friend of Holder and the executor of his estate said he died on Friday at a hospital in Chandler, a suburb of Phoenix. The Pearl Harbor National Memorial also announced the veteran’s death.
Holder was born to a family in Gunter, Texas. He joined the Navy at just 18 years old in 1940. He was stationed on duty at Ford Island within Oahu’s Pearl Harbor when the Japanese attacked the U.S. naval base on December 7, 1941.
Holder often talked about the events of that day. He said, “The first bomb that fell on Pearl Harbor was about 100 yards from me,” adding, “saw guys swimming through burning oil in the water.”
The veteran recalled diving into a ditch to avoid being shot. He hunkered down behind the safety of a sandbag fortress. “I wondered if this was the day I would die,” Holder recalled in a 2016 interview. “That morning I watched as Japanese dive bombers devastated Pearl Harbor. I knew that we would no longer sit on the sidelines of the war ravaging Europe,” he said.
In the days following the attack, Holder spent time building a makeshift machine gun pit. He lined a ditch with sandbags for protection.
Around 2,400 servicemen were killed in the Pearl Harbor attack which propelled the U.S. into World War II. he USS Arizona alone lost 1,177 sailors and Marines, which was almost half the death toll.
During his service, Holder fought in the Battle of Midway. He also flew missions over Guadalcanal and the Solomon Islands before he was transferred to England and flew missions along the French coast and the English Channel.
Holder was awarded with several honors which included two distinguished flying cross medals, six air medals, a presidential citation and six commendation medals. In 1948, he was honorably discharged from his service.
After being honorably discharged from service, Holder worked 25 years as a corporate and commercial pilot. In his free time he took up golf and then later in life moved to a retirement community in Arizona.
In his retirement, he became an avid WWII educator. He was a regular at Pearl Harbor commemorations and museums and school according to his friend Darlene Tryon.
On his 100th birthday, he was asked to take an honor flight out of Mesa’s Falcon Field to celebrate. When he was asked the secret to his long life, the veteran said, “good heart exercise and two scotch and sodas every night.”
Tryon said an early April memorial service is being planned for Holder in Phoenix. The decorated veteran will be buried at Arlington National Cemetery at a later date.
While there are no official statistics on how many men and women who fought in Pearl Harbor are still alive, the guess is that there might not be a lot of them. Thus it is best to honor those who served whenever we find them.
Our prayers go out to the family and loved ones of Jack Holder. Please share this piece so others can know his incredible story as well.