American hero Aaron Cook passed away on Saturday, August 3 at the age of 96. Cook was a survivor of the attack on Pearl Harbor.
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ABC 13 reports that Cook's funeral was held on Thursday, August 8. The veteran was laid to rest in Houston's national cemetery.
The Texas native enlisted in the Navy in 1940. He was 19 years old and stationed on Battleship Row when Pearl Harbor was attacked.
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Cook's widow, Marjorie Cook, said her husband didn't talk about the attack for many years, but it was important to Cook that Americans never forget what happened on December 7, 1941.
"He was a great storyteller, but he did not say much for a long time," Marjorie Cook told ABC 13. "I'd say it was 20 or 30 years before he'd ever talk about it. I think all of a sudden, it dawned on him what he'd been through. He was afraid that people were going to forget about that attack on Pearl Harbor. He wanted people to always remember that."
In 2016, Aaron Cook told ABC 13 that the attack on Pearl Harbor changed everything for him as a young man.
"Oh goodness, I grew up in one day," Cook said.
Thank you for your service, Mr. Cook.
Update: This post was updated on August 19. A previous version of this article published on August 12 referred to Mr. Cook as the last known survivor of Pearl Harbor in Texas. We have since heard from readers who know of other Texas veterans who served in Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941. We regret the error. We thank each and every veteran for their service to our country.
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