It was Luther and Johnny Staton, professional plumbers with Best Price Plumbing and Drains in Beaverton, who first took notice of Gordon Stone and his service aboard the USS Ticonderoga.
Stone, a resident of Tigard’s Summerfield residential community for almost 20 years, served aboard the fabled aircraft carrier in the closing days of World War II.
Johnny Staton said he found Stone, who turned 103 years old in August, to be a “nice gentleman” and thought it would be fitting for the Veterans of Foreign Wars Post No. 3452 in Tualatin to honor the veteran.
And that’s just what they did on Monday, Nov. 11, during a short presentation at the Tualatin VFW Hall.
The USS Ticonderoga would see extensive action during the war, with both conventional attacks from the Japanese as well as several attempted kamikaze attacks. Stone was on board during an unsuccessful attack.
“We warded them off. Our planes took off, kicked (them) out and got them away from us,” he recalled.
He added: “I was only on the ship for about, not quite a year, but the last day was the worst day. We lost a couple a couple planes that day,” recalled Stone.