America's Oldest Veteran Reveals What Keeps Him Feeling Young At 111

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America's Oldest Veteran Reveals What Keeps Him Feeling Young At 111

We've profiled some people who manage to stay young at heart, but they've got nothing on corporal Richard Overton, who hardly looks his age after turning 111 a few months ago. For more than 70 years, he's been a fixture of his neighborhood in Austin Texas, where he spends his days sitting on the porch of the home he built himself.

He's easy to find, because the city has renamed his street Richard Overton Avenue, and he'll probably greet you with a smile and a wave as you're walking by.

But what keeps the friendly "supercentanarian" - and the world's oldest living World War 2 veteran - fit in his old age? Thankfully it's not daily exercise.

Overton says 2 things have kept him alive for so long: enjoying his cigars (he smokes about 12 a day) and his faith in God. It may sound like a stretch, but the results speak for themselves.

Born in 1906, Overton is older than paper towels, and the same age as radio broadcasting. He was married twice and outlived all his family except a few cousins.

He's seen his fair share of history too: Overton arrived at Pearl Harbor just moments after the Japanese bombing, and spent World War 2 serving in the Pacific, including a stop at Iwo Jima. He even got the chance to meet President Barack Obama twice at Veteran's Day ceremonies.

Unfortunately, Overton's health has been declining in recent years.

Click the next page to learn about Overton's daily routine, and how you can support him!

Overton keeps things simple, and spends most of the day relaxing on his porch. He wakes up bright and early at 5am, drinking anywhere from 2-4 cups of coffee to help wake up. After pacing around his home to stretch his muscles, he'll sit down to a bowl of grits and a glass of whole milk for breakfast, but he likes to treat himself to fried food for dinner.

He'll sit on his porch for 10 hours if the weather is nice enough, smoking his cigars and enjoying a glass of whiskey and coke.

But lately the veteran's age has been catching up with him.

Aazah

A bout of pneumonia put him in the hospital recently, and he's had to stop taking the walks through his neighborhood that he used to enjoy.

He also needs 24/7 care from a pair of live-in nurses, and that doesn't come cheap. Thankfully, his cousins started a GoFundMe page for him, and the donations have been pouring in.

Hopefully Overton makes a full recovery soon, because we'd like to catch up with him when he turns 112.

Share Overton's secrets to a long life with someone you know!

[H/T: Dallas News]

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