Jake Larson, a beloved World War II veteran and social media star known as "Papa Jake" who captivated millions with his stories, has died. He was 102 years old.
Papa Jake died "peacefully and was even cracking jokes til the very end," his granddaughter Mckaela Larson wrote on a TikTok post Saturday.
"I am so thankful to have shared my Papa Jake with you all. You meant the world to him," she continued. "When the time is right, I will continue to share Papa Jake's stories and keep his memory alive. We appreciate all the kind words and posts. As Papa would say, love you all the mostest."
Born in Owatonna, Minn. on Dec. 20, 1922, Larson joined the Minnesota National Guard when he was just 15 years old by claiming he was 18. He was then assigned to the U.S. Army's 135th Infantry Regiment in the 34th Infantry Division — which is known as the "Red Bull."
During WWII, Larson was deployed to Ireland, and then on June 6, 1944, he was one of 34,000 Allied soldiers to storm Omaha Beach during the D-Day invasion of German-occupied Normandy.
In recent years, Larson's posts on social media, with the help of his family, have gained him a global following. His TikTok page, with the handle @storytimewithpapajake, has 1.2 million followers and his posts have more than 11 million likes. He also has more than 16,000 subscribers on YouTube.
His recollections of the moment he landed on Omaha Beach — where he escaped enemy machine gun fire — as well as other memories of fighting in the war have garnered millions of views across different social media platforms.
"It seemed like that the landing was an eternity, with all the firing going on.... I can't describe it. And people say, 'Were you scared?' I was scared of stepping on a landmine, and that's what I was trying to prevent," Larson said in a video posted by the U.S. Army last month. "I was 5 foot 7 at that time. I weighed 120 pounds and I said, 'Thank God the Germans aren't good at shooting at toothpicks'."
Larson understood that the fight came at a cost and tremendous sacrifice. At least 2,400 American troops died during the invasion on Omaha Beach.
"There's going to be casualties but we're willing to risk that. We had to get this done. We had to relieve the world of this guy called Hitler," Papa Jake also recalled in the video.
Larson received a Bronze star from the U.S. Army and the Legion of Honor, France's highest honor. His interview on D-Day by CNN's Christiane Amanpour won an Emmy award in June.
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