{"id":353,"date":"2026-05-13T05:34:24","date_gmt":"2026-05-13T05:34:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/tampamovingjournal.com\/?p=353"},"modified":"2026-05-13T05:34:24","modified_gmt":"2026-05-13T05:34:24","slug":"lakeland-world-war-ii-veteran-celebrates-100th-birthday-i-always-had-an-american-flag-with-me","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/tampamovingjournal.com\/?p=353","title":{"rendered":"Lakeland World War II veteran celebrates 100th birthday: ‘I always had an American flag with me’"},"content":{"rendered":"

LAKELAND, Fla.<\/strong> – <\/span>In Lakeland, one man is celebrating a milestone that few reach, reflecting on a life defined by quiet courage and a persistent love for his country.<\/p>

Read more Family of Largo Navy veteran killed in motorcycle crash urge drivers to \u2018look twice\u2019<\/a><\/p>

Stanley O\u2019Dell turned 100 years old on St. Patrick\u2019s Day, but don\u2019t expect him to slow down.\u00a0<\/p>

Whether he\u2019s making his daily “hallway rounds” or sharing a laugh with neighbors, O\u2019Dell remains as active as the day he signed up to serve.<\/p>

<\/div>

Timeline:<\/p>

Growing up as the son of a dairy farmer, life wasn’t easy for O\u2019Dell.\u00a0<\/p>

O\u2019Dell recalls a childhood of making his own toys and facing early tragedy when he lost his brother, George, to a gun accident at just six years old.\u00a0<\/p>

When World War II broke out, O\u2019Dell saw an opportunity to serve.\u00a0<\/p>

\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n <\/div>

O\u2019Dell signed up for the military the very day he turned 18.<\/p>

“I had relatives in the first war. Some got hurt, some didn\u2019t come back,” O\u2019Dell said. “I was just ready to go when it was my turn.”<\/p>

By age 20, O\u2019Dell was stationed at Tulln Air Base in Europe.\u00a0<\/p>

As a radio repair technician with the 12th Tactical Air Command of the Army Air Corps, O\u2019Dell was the invisible thread holding the front lines together, keeping trucks, pilots and ground troops in constant communication.<\/p>

\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n <\/div>

While O\u2019Dell earned a chest full of medals during his three years of service, he remains remarkably humble about his achievements.\u00a0<\/p>

When asked how he earned his Good Conduct Medal, O\u2019Dell simply laughed and said, “I don’t know, just by doing what I\u2019m supposed to do, I guess.”<\/p>

Dig deeper:<\/p>

Despite being part of the Air Corps, O\u2019Dell admits he never had the “flying bug.”\u00a0<\/p>

Read more Historic Palmetto cemetery vandalized with graffiti, 17 graves damaged: \u2018It\u2019s evil, it hurts really bad\u2019<\/a><\/p>

O\u2019Dell preferred keeping his feet \u2014 and the equipment \u2014 on the ground.\u00a0<\/p>

\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n <\/div>

However, the weight of the war still stays with him.\u00a0<\/p>

While O\u2019Dell takes pride in his service, he frequently thinks of the men who didn’t get to come home and see the peace they helped build.<\/p>

Community commitment<\/h2>

O’Dell’s commitment to his community didn\u2019t end when he hung up his uniform.\u00a0<\/p>

After the war, O\u2019Dell returned to his roots in the dairy business, working at a milk plant for 35 years.\u00a0<\/p>

O\u2019Dell jokes that his secret to hitting the 100-year mark might just be the milk he still drinks every day.<\/p>

\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n <\/div>

More impressively, O\u2019Dell spent another 35 years serving his neighbors as a volunteer firefighter.\u00a0<\/p>

Throughout his entire life, the “Stars and Stripes” have never been far from O\u2019Dell’s side.<\/p>

What’s next:<\/p>

Now a member of the “Centenarians Club,” O\u2019Dell continues to be a fixture of his Lakeland community.\u00a0<\/p>

As O\u2019Dell reflects on a century of life, his message remains simple and rooted in the patriotism that drove him to enlist in 1942.<\/p>

Read more Men in recovery support each other after losing everything in fire at Valrico sober living home<\/a><\/p>

“I always had an American flag with me,” O\u2019Dell said. “Great country.”<\/p> <\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In Lakeland, one man is celebrating a milestone that few reach, reflecting on a life defined by quiet courage and a persistent love for his country. Stanley O\u2019Dell turned 100 years old on St. Patrick\u2019s Day, but don\u2019t expect him to slow down.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":348,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[83,45,102,101],"tags":[85,46,105,104],"class_list":["post-353","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-lakeland","category-military","category-military-may","category-veterans","tag-lakeland","tag-military","tag-military-may","tag-veterans"],"yoast_head":"\nLakeland World War II veteran celebrates 100th birthday: 'I always had an American flag with me' - Tampa moving journal<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/tampamovingjournal.com\/?p=353\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Lakeland World War II veteran celebrates 100th birthday: 'I always had an American flag with me' - Tampa moving journal\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"In Lakeland, one man is celebrating a milestone that few reach, reflecting on a life defined by quiet courage and a persistent love for his country. 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