The man believed to be one of the last, if not the last survivor, of the attack on Pearl Harbor living here in Missouri, died on Monday.
John Reed of Troy, Missouri, died Monday afternoon, a week before his birthday.
John's son Mike Reed, said his dad joined the Navy in 1941. He said his father didn't discuss the war much until later in his life. He did recall his dad telling him about the Japanese planes flying so low during the attack he could see the pilot's eyes.
John left the Navy in 1945. Mike said his dad worked for Western Electric for 35 years. After retirement, he lived near Table Rock Lake before moving to Troy about 10 years ago.
John was married for 64 years to his wife Martha. He had one son and four grandchildren.
"If everyone lived life the way he lived it, there would be no problems in the world," Mike said.
5 On Your Side contacted several veterans organizations and The National Personnel Records Center to see if John Reed was the last surviving Missouri resident to live through the attack on Pearl Harbor. Unfortunately, we were told by several organizations it would be nearly impossible to confirm considering such records don't exist or aren't readily available.
John Reed will be buried with full military honors on Friday morning at Jefferson Barracks National Cemetery.
