CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — Saying goodbye to a member of the Greatest Generation doesnt get any easier as the sun sets on those remarkable Americans. It's even more of a heartache when we hear their stories and how much they did to fight for our nation.
Case in point -- the remarkable life of one Seaman A.J. Dunn of Corpus Christi, Texas, who joined the U.S. Navy to serve his country at the age of 19. On Tuesday, family, friends and fellow veterans celebrated those final honors for him.
The ceremony was rife with every bit of pomp and circumstance our veterans can muster.
"My Uncle A.J. was an awesome man," said Danny Dunn, A.J.'s nephew.
Danny said he his uncle was a very proud and patriotic American, sharing stories of that day, Dec. 7, 1941, at Pearl Harbor. He was there along with another Corpus Christi resident, W.J. Sherrill, who was on board the U.S.S. Arizona.
On the morning of the attack, A.J. was out on R&R and was supposed to meet up with Sherrill, but it never happened.
"When they got to the base, here comes this jap plane so close he could see his face in the windshield," said Grace Dunn, A.J.'s wife.
The recollections of that day that will live in infamy are as vivid today as the day it happened.
"He always told us stories in detail, as did my father, of Pearl Harbor and of the atrocities that happened that day," Grace said.
A.J. often spoke of the near misses and narrow escapes during the war to help others understand about the fight for freedom.
Another Pearl Harbor survivor echoed A.J.'s accounts of that day.
"We couldn't believe what we were seeing. That's all we saw. The japs hitting us. Hitting our ships. No opposition," Pearl Harbor survivor Bob Batterson said.
It is often said a person touches so many lives in their lifetime. That being the case, perhaps those who feel it most are the subsequent generations, absorbing not only their history but their love.
"He was my hero. He was my mentor, and I was his sidekick. I loved my grandpa so much," said Kimberly Thorne, A.J.'s niece.
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