USS Arizona Last Pearl Harbor Survivor Passed Away

Credits to 12news.com

A Patriot Through And Through

Thousands of lives were lost in the Pearl Harbor attack, with USS Arizona alone losing 1,177 men. 

One of its survivors, Jack Holder, went on to become a decorated pilot who flew over 100 missions in the Pacific and European theaters. The first bomb that fell on Pearl Harbor was only about 100 years from him.

 

“I wondered if this was the day I would die. I knew that we would no longer sit on the sidelines of the war ravaging Europe. ”

– Jack Holder on his experience during the Pearl Harbor attack.

 

Holder was awarded two Distinguished Flying Cross medals, six Air Medals, a Presidential Citation, and six Commendation medals before he was honorably discharged in 1948. 

After the war, Holder continued as a corporate and commercial pilot for 25 years. He eventually retired and became a WWII educator and a regular contributor to Pearl Harbor commemorations for the last twenty years. 

Unfortunately, Jack Holder passed away on February 24, 2023, at the age of 101. He will be buried at Arlington National Cemetery after his memorial service in early April.