An American World War Two veteran sadly passed away as he was making his way to France to mark the 80th anniversary of D-Day.

Yesterday, (June 6) marked 80 years since Allied forces stormed the beaches of Normandy in what would be a pivotal moment in the Second World War.

The landing, also known as Operation Neptune, is the single largest seaborne invasion in history.

According to History.com, 4,414 Allied soldiers died on June 6, 1944, with 2,501 of them being American.

German casualties are estimated to have been between 4000-9000.

D-Day was a successful operation for the Allies, as it marked a turning point in the war as the Nazi forces were pushed back through occupied France, and surrendered just over a year later.

To mark the 80th anniversary of the historic battle, events took place throughout Europe, with some of the last remaining veterans who were there on the day heading back to the beaches that they stormed eight decades ago.

102-year-old Robert Persichitti, from Fairport, NY, tragically did not complete his journey.

The Navy veteran, part of a group associated with the National World War II Museum, had flown overseas and was on a ship bound for Normandy.

He suddenly fell ill and was airlifted to a hospital in Germany.

“I’m really excited to be going,” Persichitti, who had a history of heart problems, told WROC-TV a day before his departure.

In his final moments, Persichitti listened to his favorite singer, Frank Sinatra, according to his friend and travel companion Al DeCarlo, who spoke with 13WHAM.

“The doctor was with him. He was not alone, he was at peace and he was comfortable,” DeCarlo said. “She put his favorite singer, Frank Sinatra, on her phone and he peacefully left us.”

Persichitti, a radioman second class on the command ship USS Eldorado, served in Iwo Jima, Okinawa, and Guam.

He witnessed the iconic raising of the American flag atop Mount Suribachi on Iwo Jima on Feb. 19, 1945—a moment immortalized in one of the most famous photos of the war.

“I was on the deck,” Persichitti told Stars and Stripes in a 2019 interview. “When I got on the island today, I just broke down.”

He recounted the horrors he witnessed from the Eldorado, including injured Marines being brought aboard and numerous burials at sea.

“When they made the landing, they started losing all these guys,” Persichitti recalled. “It wasn’t a very good sight.”

Persichitti paid his respects to fallen comrades every Friday, not just on commemorative days.

“I wear a red sleeveless T-shirt ... Every Friday, I put that red on, to represent all the blood that was lost during World War II,” he said.

After the war, Persichitti became a public school teacher in Rochester and continued to visit schools to share his wartime experiences.

Our thoughts are with Persichitti, his loved ones, and all those who gave their lives on June 6, 1944.

Featured image credit: Three Lions/Getty

A man passed away just a day after his wife of 68 years died of congestive heart failure last month, MailOnline reports.

Bob Johnson, 88, from Minnesota said goodbye to his wife, 87-year-old Corrine on November 24 before losing a battle with cancer less than 48 hours later.

Learn more about the late couple's touching love story and tragic passing in this news report:

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The couple married in 1951 and went on to raise their seven children together on Norseland Eastview Farm. They lived here together for 67 years.

Bob and Corrine's children say it was in no way coincidental that Bob died a mere 33 hours after the passing of his wife, and believe that he "waited" for their mother to "go first" so that the late couple could go "on their terms".

"I sort of thought he looked like he could go for weeks," Bruce Johnson, the couple's son, told KARE11. "As soon as mom died he went downhill and died in a day. It's hard to imagine it's a coincidence."

It was believed that the short-lived widower was in a worse condition - in terms of his health - than his wife before she was taken to hospital with congestive heart failure.

'When mom passed, they pulled the curtain between the two beds, he just stared at the curtain,' Beth Kinkeade, their daughter, told the publication.

According to MailOnline, the pair shared a kiss while Corrine whispered to Bob that she loved him just days before she died.

They were both honored at a funeral service on Tuesday at Scandian Grove Lutheran Church in rural St. Peter, with their children sharing sweet sentiments about their beloved parents.

Another loving couple, married for 71 years, tragically died just hours apart:

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"They went on their terms," said the pair's youngest son, Brent Johnson, who explains that his father was always intent on putting his mother first.

"So it was only fitting that in the end he waited for mother to go first and then he passed away," Brent added.

Dick Cheney, the former vice president of the USA, has died at the age of 84.

Cheney, one of the architects of the ‘war on terror’ under President George W. Bush, served two terms between 2001 and 2009.

Dick Cheney has died, a family statement confirmed

His death was announced in a statement from his family, who were present when he died.

It is believed that the ex-VP died of pneumonia and cardiac and vascular disease.

The statement read:  "For decades, Dick Cheney served our nation, including as White House Chief of Staff, Wyoming's Congressman, Secretary of Defense, and Vice President of the United States.

"Dick Cheney was a great and good man who taught his children and grandchildren to love our country, and to live lives of courage, honor, love, kindness, and fly fishing.

"We are grateful beyond measure for all Dick Cheney did for our country.

"And we are blessed beyond measure to have loved and been loved by this noble giant of a man."

Richard Overton, who was the oldest man in the United States, passed away on Thursday at the age of 112. The death was confirmed by family member Shirley Overton, who revealed he had been in hospital battling pneumonia.

Overton was also the oldest living World War II veteran in the country, for which he was celebrated in a speech by former President Barack Obama in 2013.

He volunteered to join the army in 1942, joining the 188th Aviation Engineer Battalion, an all-black unit that served across various Pacific islands. In his speech at a Veterans Day ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery, Obama said of Overton:

"He was there at Pearl Harbor when the battleships were still smouldering. He was there at Okinawa. He was there at Iwo Jima, where he said. 'I only got out of there by the grace of God.'

"When the war ended, Richard headed home to Texas, to a nation bitterly divided by race. And his service on the battlefield was not always matched by the respect that he deserved at home. But this veteran held his head high."

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A longtime resident of Austin, Texas, Richard lived on Richard Overton Avenue, a street renamed after him. Two filmmakers from the area made a short documentary about him in 2015, in which he explained his diet was made up of soup, corn, fish and milk. "And ice cream. I eat ice cream every night. It makes me happy," he added. "Especially butter pecan."

"I still walk, I still talk, and I still drive," Overton said in the documentary, referring to his pickup truck. He also discussed how he still went to church every week.

Speaking to CNN in 2013, he credited God for his long lifespan, saying, "If man had it, I'd have been dead, but God's got it, and he's keeping me well."

"I drink whiskey in my coffee. Sometimes I drink it straight," he said when he was 107. "I smoke my cigars, blow the smoke out; I don't swallow it."

In May this year, Richard's family and friends gathered in his home to celebrate his 112th birthday. The event attracted much media attention, including outlet KXAN, who quoted him as saying, "I feel fine every day. No pain and no aches."

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During his lifetime, he was positioned in Hawaii, Okinawa, Guam and Iwo Jima, and lived to see 19 US presidents. Texas Gov. Greg Abbott called Overton "an American icon and a Texas legend" in a statement made on Thursday, in which he said:

"With his quick wit and kind spirit he touched the lives of so many, and I am deeply honoured to have known him. Richard Overton made us proud to be Texans and proud to be Americans. We can never repay Richard Overton for his service to our nation and for his lasting impact on the Lone Star State."

Our thoughts go out to Richard's friends and family.

President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden have announced the death of their beloved 13-year-old German Shepherd.

The sad news was shared on social media on Saturday, June 20, namely on the 78-year-old Democrat's POTUS Twitter and Instagram accounts and the 70-year-old first lady's FLOTUS accounts.

Champ, who was one of two German Shepherds living at the White House with the Bidens, passed away peacefully at home, the pair confirmed.

In a joint statement, the Bidens said of their recent loss: "Our hearts are heavy today as we let you all know that our beloved German Shepherd, Champ, passed away peacefully at home."

Paying tribute to their beloved canine, they continued: "He was our constant, cherished companion during the last 13 years and was adored by the entire Biden family. Even as Champ’s strength waned in his last months, when we came into a room, he would immediately pull himself up, his tail always wagging, and nuzzle us for an ear scratch or a belly rub.

"Wherever we were, he wanted to be, and everything was instantly better when he was next to us. He loved nothing more than curling up at our feet in front of a fire at the end of the day, joining us as a comforting presence in meetings, or sunning himself in the White House garden.

"In his younger days, he was happiest chasing golf balls on the front lawn of the Naval Observatory or racing to catch our grandchildren as they ran around our backyard in Delaware.

"In our most joyful moments and in our most grief-stricken days, he was there with us, sensitive to our every unspoken feeling and emotion. We love our sweet, good boy and will miss him always."

Champ started living with the Bidens when he was a three-month-old puppy back in 2008, The Guardian reports. He had also lived at the couple's Washington residence when Biden was vice-president in the Obama administration.

In 2018, the Bidens were joined by a three-year-old German Shepherd named Major, who would later make history as the first rescue dog to live in the White House.

Under the previous administration, there were no dogs living at the White House with former POTUS Donald Trump and his wife Melania. Per The Guardian, the Republican was the first president in a century not to own a dog.

During Barack Obama's presidency, the first family lived with a male Portuguese water dog named Bo, from 2009, and later in 2013, Sunny, a female Portuguese water dog, joined them. Bo sadly died earlier this year in March following a battle with cancer.

Featured image credit: American Photo Archive / Alamy