A 98-year-old World War Two veteran realised his lifelong dream at a Cork pub after relishing in the moment that he got to sing his favourite ballad.
Corporal Don Graves, a retired US Marine and a survivor of the Battle of Iwo Jima during the Second World War, enlisted in the corps at just 17 years old and as little as two years later landed on Japanese beaches entrenched in battle, Cork Beo reported.
Speaking on the Last Letters podcast, a show that asks guests what they would write tomorrow if it was their last day on Earth, Don revealed that his dream was to visit his grandmother’s homeland of Cork.
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“I love music, it’s the Irish in me,” he said, adding: "I want to go to Ireland and when I get there, I’m going into an Irish pub and I’m going to order a glass of green beer and I’m going to sing Danny Boy."
Don, having losing his wife after being married for 72 years, felt he would never make it to Ireland, due to not wanting to make the trip alone.
Following the episode's upload, the podcast’s team established a GoFundMe page to raise capital to send Don to Ireland with a helper for his milestone 98th birthday.
Hundreds gave money to the page, which raised nearly $21,000 for the trip, while American Airlines and a Cork hotel also collaborated to ensure Don’s wish came true.
On Wednesday, he raised a glass at The White House pub in Kinsale and belted out his favourite tune.
“This is the best birthday,” said Don, who poured his own pint and dedicated his birthday wish to the Irish people.
“The Irish, you are the happiest people I have ever met. If my grandma was here and saw all of this, that would be beautiful," he said.
Kinsale Mayor Marie O’Sullivan, military historian Dan Harvey, singer Sharon Crosbie, and a host of others met Don.
He also received a tour of Collins Barracks, meeting members of the Irish Defence Forces, and he’s since been invited elsewhere in Europe - such as the D-Day remembrance ceremony in Normandy.
The American's role in the Battle of Iwo Jima was one of the most deadly a soldier could have undertaken. Lasting over five weeks in total, 28,000 people were slain in combat.
America emerged victorious, eventually hoisting the US flag on the small island. Don is the only surviving member of his 335-man battalion.
“I had 300 in my company when we hit the beach, six weeks later 18 of us walked off,” he said.
At the end of Wednesday’s festivities, locals in Kinsale told Don they would love to see him return as a centurion, for his 100th birthday, to which he replied: “Who’s going to carry me?”
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