Sadly, just got word that 99yr old Pearl Harbor survivor, Herb Weatherwax has passed away. Tonight is dedicated to you. #RockTheTroops?? pic.twitter.com/8u9ZT5ijrM
— Dwayne Johnson (@TheRock) December 13, 2016
I met Herb Weatherwax when I went to Hawaii and visited the Arizona Memorial. R.I.P, good sir.
HONOLULU – An Army veteran who survived the attack on Pearl Harbor that brought the U.S. into World War II and later volunteered at the historic site has died at age 99.
Herb Weatherwax greeted people several times a week at the visitors center of the memorial for the USS Arizona, a battleship that sank in the Japanese attack. He cruised around in a motorized scooter and wore a cap embroidered with “Pearl Harbor Survivor” as he posed for photos and educated visitors.
Weatherwax died Monday, National Park Service spokeswoman Rebecca Schwab said.
He had volunteered within the past month, said Edean Saito, program services manager for Pacific Historic Parks. Three other Pearl Harbor survivors greet people at the visitors center.
“Uncle Herb” Weatherwax attended last week’s ceremony commemorating the 75th anniversary of the 1941 attack, the Navy said.
“Papa was ready, and it was a strong yet peaceful death,” his daughter Carrie Weatherwax said in a statement Tuesday distributed by the Navy. “As with this ‘Greatest Generation,’ Papa left this earth with dignity and grace.”