Jack Hamlin, Springfield's last surviving D-Day veteran recently honored by may, has died

Update : Jack Hamlin, Springfield's last surviving D-Day veteran, died Saturday, July 20, according to Gorman-Scharpf Funeral Home. He was 102. Graveside services are scheduled for 2 p.m. Wednesday at Maple Park Cemetery, with further details to come, the funeral home's website said.

Sunday, Springfield Mayor Ken McClure issued a statement extending sympathy, condolences and gratitude to Hamlin's family.

Here is the story published in the News-Leader after McClure presented Hamlin with a key to the city June 6, which the mayor declared to be Jack Hamlin Day.

The last D-Day Springfield veteran sat watchfully, gently squeezing the hand of his companion Delores McClish as people, including Mayor Ken McClure, gathered to honor him Thursday afternoon. The day, June 6, was a significant day for the entire world, marking the 80th anniversary of D-Day, but in Springfield the day became particularly significant as McClure declared the day Jack Hamlin Day honoring the local World War II veteran and presenting him with a key to the city.

The anniversary 80 years since the Normandy landings set the stage for allied forces defeating Germany in the war and the day Hamlin entered icy waters with a 30-yard rope around his waist to rescue wounded soldiers as part of the U.S. Coast Guard. That day the men on his cutter saved about 70 soldiers. The following day, Hamlin was credited with shooting down a German fighter plane strafing American soldiers on Utah Beach, according to a bio provided by the Rachel Donelson Chapter Daughters of the American Revolution who sponsored Thursday's event. Through his several returns to France, he has been honored for his bravery — having dinner with the Queen of England in 1994 and being awarded the French Legion of Honor in 2014 in addition to the Bronze Star.

As a ceremony honoring the now 102-year-old veteran unfolded in the lobby of The Montclair Senior Living, Hamlin quietly expressed his gratitude and teared up at times. He was joined by his family, representatives from U.S. senators' offices, members of the coast guard, member of Sons of American Revolution, Honor Flight of the Ozarks, Veterans of Foreign Wars and Springfield and the Greater Ozarks Area Warriors' Watch Riders among others.

"I just can't put into words how much it means to be able to do this and to thank him," Pat Haas, Regent Rachel Donelson Chapter DAR, said.

The Coast Guard performed passing of the Olde Glory, a ceremony typically performed for retirement where the flag is passed down through members as a poem from the American flag's perspective is read. As the flag was placed in his hands and the audience rose to their feet in applause, Hamlin was full of emotion of both gratitude and honor for those who did not make it home 80 years ago.

"They give me so much recognition when there are so many other men who lost their lives, giving their life for the people of Springfield and the world," he later said. "So I honor them today, they are with me, I am with them ... We think of them every day."

With every return to Normandy, he said he visits the fallen who are there, still walking on the sandy beach.

Living a full life

Now 102 years old, the Springfield native first tried to enlist in the Naval Air Corps though was disqualified due to having an enlarged heart from rheumatic fever. Instead, in 1942, Hamlin joined the Coast Guard which brought him to New Orleans, Boston, New York and Newport. He was eventually named Chief Boatswain.

His primary care physician Norm Knowlton recognized how quickly the number of living D-Day vets are dwindling and said Hamlin may be the last living D-Day Coast Guard veteran in the country making it an ever-more special moment to share his legacy with the crowd.

His heroism did not stop there, six months after D-Day, Hamlin lead a crew to rescue SS Leopoldville, a Belgian cruise ship pressed into wartime service that had gotten torpedoed.

Not long after, he returned to the states, first to attend Cumberland University and play football and eventually back to Missouri enrolling at the University of Missouri to study law. Coming from a family of lawyers, Hamlin graduated from law school but then failed the bar exam.

In 1951, he was elected to the Missouri House of Representatives and soon he pivoted to pursue insurance, owning and operating his own agency for 40 years, according to the bio. His role in public service continued as the served on the Springfield Park Board, Springfield Planning Commission and part of the city's charter revision committee. In 1971, Hamlin was also appointed as the deputy collector of revenue at the Missouri Department of Revenue.

Stepping up to bat

Hamlin's talents both before and after his time in France were largely reserved for the baseball field. After graduating from high school and enrolling at Drury College, now University, Hamlin was recruited to play for the New York Yankees farm club in Joplin. The following summer he played in the semi-pro Ban Johnson League out of Manhattan, Kansas.

After leaving the service, his love for baseball continued simultaneously with his career in insurance. He played a season in Nebraska and then signed with the Springfield Generals, according to the Daughters of the American Revolution release.

Even when he was off the field, he remained engaged with the sports scene. Hamlin managed teams and chaired the Springfield Chamber of Commerce athletic committee as well as the National Softball Tournament Committee.

More: Hundreds honor the fallen at Memorial Day event at Springfield National Cemetery

His role in D-Day combined with his love for the sport resulted in an ESPN article chronicling his accomplishments, which notes that he may be the last surviving professional athlete who served in Normandy.

While that day in the water remains vivid in Hamlin's mind, recounting the determination to save each person and bring them back home and mourning those he was not able to save, he said he now finds the most joy from the people around him.

"I did survive. I did come home. I did have a family, I got married," Hamlin said. "I enjoyed life, I still do, I always will."

Marta Mieze covers local government at the News-Leader. Have feedback, tips or story ideas? Contact her at mmieze@news-leader.com.

This article originally appeared on Springfield News-Leader: Jack Hamlin, Springfield's last surviving D-Day veteran recently honored by may, has died