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| Oldest U.S. WWI Vet Dies in Ohio at 109 |
| 2007-12-21 |
| J. Russell Coffey, the oldest known surviving U.S. veteran of World War I, has died. The retired teacher, one of only three U.S. veterans from the "war to end all wars," was 109. Coffey died Thursday at the Briar Hill Health Campus in North Baltimore, where he had lived for the past four or five years, said Gaye Boggs, nursing director at the nursing home. No cause of death has been determined, she said Friday. His health began failing in October. "We're sure going to miss him," Boggs said. "He was our most famous resident, that's for sure." |
| Posted by:Anonymoose |
| #1 Years ago I knew a man with a similar story, being inducted about one month before the war ended. He had been scheduled to attend the officer's course for artillery balloon reconnaissance. His great memory from basic training was how very mean his drill sergeant was. A man he later helped hold down during his death spasms of Spanish influenza. |
| Posted by: Anonymoose 2007-12-21 12:31 |