Canada's Oldest Vet: A Life of Service & Resilience

Bredet Seasler believed to be Canada's oldest person and its last surviving World War II veteran passed away on April 2nd at nearly 100, 11 years old.

Turned down by the Royal Canadian Air Force for poor vision in one eye, the 28-year-old enlisted in the Army instead, becoming a

Telecommunications mechanic who helped roll out secret radar tech to down German bombers.

Born in Akron, Ohio, in 1915, he moved to Toronto as a toddler when his dad took a job at the good year plant.

He worked in the company mailroom before marrying May and starting a family right before heading into service, though he stayed in Canada training on.

That radar gear, while his brother fought overseas. After the war, Bird and May settled in Fort Erie, where he ran a radio and TV repair shop before switching to a 30-year stint as a

customs officer. At the Peace Bridge border, he became a Canadian citizen in 1952, raised five kids, including twins, and built a huge family with dozens of grandkids and great-grandkids, always stressing jokes and kindness.

Even into his later years, he adapted to smartphones, emailed pals across France, Austria, and Hungary, and volunteered helping the blind bowl or teaching English.

He skipped booze and smokes life-long, ages three meals a day, dodged pills till his 90s, beat COVID quick, and his family kept him home.

Through the pandemic, his son Norm says Bird lived by finding the lightside, chatting endlessly if you let him, leaving a legacy of service and resilience that even the

Veterans Affairs Minister praised for shaping the nation. That's your update from Canada News Today, powered by AI. I'm Cory with the story.