Young Celebrates 100th Birthday of Hoosier World War II Veteran

Click here or above to watch Senator Young's full floor speech.

WASHINGTON - Today is the 100^th birthday of Hoosier World War II Veteran Clyde Milligan, and U.S. Senator Todd Young (R-Ind.) spoke about Milligan on the Senate floor.

"Let's continue to cherish and honor our Greatest Generation - the men who won World War II - so when future Americans are called to greatness, they too, in Clyde Milligan's words, will 'do anything for their country,'" said Young. "On this monumental birthday, we send him our best wishes and enduring thanks."

Clyde Milligan enlisted in the United States Army at sixteen years old, guarded America's beaches from U-boat attacks, deployed to the South Pacific, and returned home after the war to live a life marked by patriotism and faith.

To watch the full floor speech, click here.

Senator Young's full remarks, as prepared for delivery:

"I would do anything for my country."

If an epitaph for our Greatest Generation is ever written, let that be it.

Mr. President, those words were spoken by one of the remaining heroes from that selfless age.

He celebrates his 100^th birthday this week.

And on this momentous occasion, we owe him thanks for his service.

His story is powerful and his example is worth following.

At the end of 1941, a teenage attendant was knocked down when an air compressor exploded at a Hoosier Pete filling station in Indianapolis.

The blast broke windows, tore off the roof of a room, and cracked a wall. But it could not keep Clyde Milligan down.

Shortly after the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor, the minor explosion at the station was forgotten and Clyde was back on his feet, standing in a recruiting station.

What was under his feet demonstrated his devotion to country.

Clyde was a sixteen-year-old sophomore at Ben Davis High School.

The legal enlistment age was 18 and older.

Clyde had never told a lie in his life, and he was not going to start now.

But nothing was going to stop him from fighting for America.

Before Clyde walked into the recuring office, he wrote the number eighteen under his shoe.

When the recruiting officer asked if he was over eighteen, Clyde told the truth and said yes.

As a staff sergeant, he guarded beaches in Virginia and Maryland, then vulnerable to U-Boat attacks.

This assignment was made sufferable by the dances held at the camp.

But those evenings and any other comforts were just memories by the time Clyde deployed to the South Pacific.

A soldier for the 111^th Infantry Regiment, he crossed the Marshall Islands, leading a squadron during the allied invasion of Kwajalein [KWAA-JUH-LINE] Atoll.

Clyde and his men helped secure American control of the island…

…and destroy a link in the Japanese defensive perimeter.

For his valor, Clyde was awarded numerous honors, though the one he was most proud of was the Combat Infantry Badge.

That was a few years in a young man's life.

Like so many of the boys who were asked to and did the impossible, storming the beaches of Normandy, liberating concentration camps, and island hopping in the Pacific…

When the war ended, Clyde returned home to Indiana…

…married - he was wed for many years to his late wife, Marie…

…worked for and then owned a small business…

…dedicated himself to his community and his church - he's still spending his energy on behalf of New Hope Christian Church in Whitestown.

And though the war had interrupted his education, in the 1990's, Clyde - representing his fellow World War II veterans who had left school to join the fight - was awarded an honorary high school diploma.

Like so many soldiers, he seldom speaks about his service during the war.

He said in the past that he witnessed things while he served in the South Pacific that no teenager should have ever seen.

What he has shared about his service, I am told, was his sense of duty, his commitment to the men he led, and respect for those he fought under.

Whether he will admit it or not, Clyde Milligan is a hero.

For the way he answered his country's call in a time of peril.

For the way he lived his life after the war ended.

A life guided by faith, full of achievements and friendships, and as the Bible says, years.

There have been many great generations of Americans, dating back to our founding.

The patriotism and humility of one inspires the next.

So, let's continue to cherish and honor our greatest generation, the men who won World War II…

…so when future Americans are called to greatness, they too, in Clyde Milligan's words, will "do anything for their country."

On this monumental birthday, we send him our best wishes and enduring thanks.