Gratitude: A WWII Veteran’s secret to longevity

By Alaina Hansom, PhD, military family member

Could gratitude be the secret to living a long and happy life? According to my grandpa, Louis Pietrasz, a WWII Veteran, that’s quite possible.

After my grandpa’s 96th birthday, I wanted to preserve some of our family history, so I interviewed him about his experiences in WWII and secret to living to be 96 years old. What stuck out to me the most during our conversation was how much gratitude he felt toward his military service and toward life in general. He even mentioned how he feels grateful when strangers show gratitude, for instance, when he’s wearing his WWII Veteran hat in the grocery store and people stop to thank him for his service.

 Gratitude toward military service 

My grandpa tried to enlist in the Army Air Corps as early as possible, but he wasn’t called for service until he was almost 18 years old. He was trained as an aircraft mechanic, but because the war was winding down and the Army Air Corps had enough mechanics, his active-duty role was very different than his training. His honorable discharge paperwork reads “Entertainment Specialist” under “Military Occupational Specialty.” As part of the 324th Troop Carrier Squadron, my grandpa helped transport troops, military leaders, and USO entertainers to various locations in France, Germany, England, and Japan. Although he doesn’t remember the names of any of the entertainers he transported on the C-47 aircraft, he expressed gratitude for the duties he was assigned:

“It was the best service I could have ever asked for.”

Since my grandpa was stationed in Europe at the end of the war, he said he never experienced the immense war conflict that so many before him had, and he was grateful he wasn’t injured. But he explicitly expressed his gratitude to those who were. “I’m no hero,” he said. “But I’m grateful to the guys who were wounded in the Service and received medals—they deserved them.”

 Gratitude toward close relationships 

During his military service, my grandpa made friends to last a lifetime. After the war ended, he kept in touch with many of his battle buddies, visiting them all across America for homecoming parties, retirement parties, becoming the godfather to several of their children, and even receiving an invitation to the anniversary of a friend’s ordination. My grandpa has spent a lifetime valuing and maintaining his close relationships.

Looking back on his life, he said he’s grateful for the health and happiness of his family, always appreciating what he has (while not wanting for what he doesn’t have), and for the opportunities the Army Air Corps gave him in his younger years.

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Alaina Hansom, of the Henry M. Jackson Foundation, is HPRC’s Social Fitness Scientist for the Consortium for Health and Military Performance (CHAMP) at the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences (USU). Disclosure: The opinions and assertions expressed herein are those of the authors and do not reflect the official policy or position of USU or DoD. The contents of this publication are the sole responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views, opinions, or policies of The Henry M. Jackson Foundation for the Advancement of Military Medicine, Inc. Mention of trade names, commercial products, or organizations does not imply endorsement by the U.S. Government. The authors have no financial interests or relationships to disclose.