Recently, we discovered that a decorated World War II veteran about whom we wrote last summer has passed away. He was a great hero, and we will remember him for his wonderful farewell television appearance, in which he reminded us that America is worth fighting for.

Carl Spurlin Dekle, a retired Marine from Plant City, Florida, passed away on August 9, 2022, two months after his 100th birthday.

The heartbreaking and haunting interview he gave to WTVT-TV in Tampa, Florida, in July should serve as a wake-up call for why we must reverse the worrying erosion of the nation for which Dekle and so many other veterans fought and died bravely.

The recipient of the Silver Star Medal for Gallantry in Action said looking back, he was grateful because “I’ve lived a good life, meaning I’ve had a lot of happiness.”

According to his obituary, the devout Christian, who was predeceased by his first wife of 50 years and their only child, remained an unflinching optimist until his death.

“I sincerely believe in this whole world [that] everything is beautiful,” Dekle told WTVT last summer.

“If I wake up in the morning and see these plants out here in nature, and all those flowers that are in there and the green grass on the ground, that’s beautiful,” he said.

Nonetheless, the military hero noted that people frequently take life’s simple pleasures for granted. “People don’t realize what they have,” Dekle said.

One of the things that worried him in his latter days was the implosion of the United States, which caused him to question whether the sacrifices he and other World War II soldiers had made were worthwhile.

“Nowadays, I am so upset that the things we did and the things we fought for and the boys that died for it, it’s all going down the drain,” he said. “Our country’s going to hell in a handbasket.”

Dekle stated that the country had deteriorated to such an extent that he no longer recognized it.

“We haven’t got the country we had when I was raised. Not at all,” he said. “Nobody will have the fun I had. Nobody will have the opportunity I had. It’s just not the same.

“And that’s not what our boys, that’s not what they died for … It’s just not the same. That isn’t what we fought for.”

At that moment, the centenarian wept over the devastation of the country for which he and his fellow soldiers had sacrificed their lives.

Dekle soon put on a cheerful face and reassured her that life is wonderful and worth living after receiving consolation from someone in the room.

“You just remember everything’s beautiful. And live every day to the fullest,” he said.

More on this story via The Western Journal:

“Just enjoy everything as much as you possibly can.” CONTINUE READING…