World Struggle II veteran Jake Larson meets youths throughout ceremonies on the US cemetery to commemorate the 81st anniversary of the D-Day landings, on June 6, 2025 in Colleville-sur-Mer, Normandy.
Thomas Padilla/AP
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Thomas Padilla/AP
Jake Larson, a beloved World Struggle II veteran and social media star referred to as “Papa Jake” who captivated thousands and thousands together with his tales, has died. He was 102 years outdated.
Papa Jake died “peacefully and was even cracking jokes til the very finish,” his granddaughter Mckaela Larson wrote on a TikTok put up Saturday.
“I’m so grateful to have shared my Papa Jake with you all. You meant the world to him,” she continued. “When the time is true, I’ll proceed to share Papa Jake’s tales and hold his reminiscence alive. We admire all the type phrases and posts. As Papa would say, love you all of the mostest.”
Born in Owatonna, Minn. on Dec. 20, 1922, Larson joined the Minnesota Nationwide Guard when he was simply 15 years outdated by claiming he was 18. He was then assigned to the U.S. Military’s one hundred and thirty fifth Infantry Regiment within the thirty fourth Infantry Division — which is called the “Pink Bull.”
On this picture taken April 29, 2019, D-Day veteran Jake Larson poses earlier than going for a journey within the “The Spirit of Benovia” World Struggle II-era plane in Oakland, Calif.
Eric Risberg/AP
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Eric Risberg/AP
Throughout WWII, Larson was deployed to Eire, after which on June 6, 1944, he was one in every of 34,000 Allied troopers to storm Omaha Seashore through the D-Day invasion of German-occupied Normandy.
In recent times, Larson’s posts on social media, with the assistance of his household, have gained him a world following. His TikTok web page, with the deal with @storytimewithpapajake, has 1.2 million followers and his posts have greater than 11 million likes. He additionally has greater than 16,000 subscribers on YouTube.
His recollections of the second he landed on Omaha Seashore — the place he escaped enemy machine gun fireplace — in addition to different recollections of preventing within the conflict have garnered thousands and thousands of views throughout completely different social media platforms.
“It appeared like that the touchdown was an eternity, with all of the firing happening…. I can not describe it. And other people say, ‘Had been you scared?’ I used to be petrified of stepping on a landmine, and that is what I used to be attempting to stop,” Larson stated in a video posted by the U.S. Military final month. “I used to be 5 foot 7 at the moment. I weighed 120 kilos and I stated, ‘Thank God the Germans aren’t good at capturing at toothpicks’.”
Troopers crowd a touchdown craft on their method to Omaha Seashore through the Allied Invasion of Europe, “D-Day”, June 6, 1944.
U.S. Military picture/U.S. Military
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U.S. Military picture/U.S. Military
Larson understood that the combat got here at a price and large sacrifice. No less than 2,400 American troops died through the invasion on Omaha Seashore.
“There’s going to be casualties however we’re keen to danger that. We needed to get this accomplished. We needed to relieve the world of this man known as Hitler,” Papa Jake additionally recalled within the video.
Larson acquired a Bronze star from the U.S. Military and the Legion of Honor, France’s highest honor. His interview on D-Day by CNN’s Christiane Amanpour gained an Emmy award in June.
