SAN DIEGO COUNTY, Calif. — San Diego native and World War II veteran, Sidney Walton has died at the age of 102, peacefully on Saturday morning in Santa Monica, California, according to press release.
Sidney was born on Feb. 11, 1919 in New York City.
Paul Walton, Sidney's son posted a statement on his Facebook page about the recent loss of his father.
"It is with a heavy heart that I must announce that my dad died peacefully this morning at 102, just as he lived, right by my side and surrounded by love," said Paul Walton in his Facebook post. "Our immediate family was there. I absolutely loved my father!"
Sidney Walton is one of the country's oldest WWII veterans and lived most of his life in San Diego.
According to a GoFundMe page organized by his family to help pay for his funeral, for the last three years, Sidney was on a mission to tour around the country meeting all 50 governors and raising awareness for veterans.
Sidney always regretted missing an opportunity to meet some of the last Civil War veterans, and wanted to give everyone a chance to meet a WWII veteran before it was too late.
According to a press release, just last Tuesday, Sept. 28, he visited Oklahoma, his 40th state in his No Regrets Tour, and met with Gov. Kevin Stitt.
"I joined the Army to fight Hitler," said Sidney, who left City College of New York at 21-years-old to enlist nine months before Pearl Harbor.
The No Regrets Tour, which began in April 2018, had only 10 more states to go.
"My father was a living piece of history, reminding us not to forget the price of our freedoms today. He inspired tremendous appreciation for all veterans." said Paul Walton.
One of his last events in San Diego was attending the 50th anniversary of Tierrasanta with his son, Paul Walton said in this Facebook post.
The family set up a GoFundMe to help with funeral expenses, to learn more or to donate, visit here.