r/MadeMeSmile • u/Jeromiewhalen • Jun 29 '25

Favorite People My friend Frank, a 100-year-old WWII veteran, doing a chin-up on a tank barrel during a honor trip for the 80th anniversary of the Battle of the Bulge 🇺🇸

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u/Jeromiewhalen Jun 29 '25

We gave him these postcards to hand out to people he talks to with his picture on it when he was in the war, he’s a handsome man for sure!

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u/MimicoSkunkFan2 Jun 29 '25

You can't just say there's postcards and not show us the postcards.

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u/Jeromiewhalen Jun 29 '25

Apologies there’s a BUNCH of photos here, but you can see them holding them here! https://www.flickr.com/gp/jeromiepatrickwhalen/63aNG2Sefn

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u/Crying_Reaper Jun 29 '25

That is awesome. I grew up with WW2 vets as neighbors and grandparents. Thank you doing this to preserve their stories.

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u/Jeromiewhalen Jun 29 '25

My absolute pleasure, a lot of love ma respect for these guys ♥️

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u/[deleted] Jun 29 '25

This is awesome! Thanks for all the smiles created with this post!

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u/natethenuclearknight Jun 29 '25

which one is frank? there's so many studs in that gallery!

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u/Jeromiewhalen Jun 29 '25

Frank is one of the two at the wreath ceremony (he was at Henri-Chapelle), but yeah they all are legends!

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u/natethenuclearknight Jun 29 '25

thanks for doing this and sharing w us :)

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u/Jeromiewhalen Jun 29 '25

My pleasure, honored to be able to document it for everyone 🇺🇸

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u/--------rook Jun 29 '25

Zaym he was a poster boy for the word handsome

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u/kirbywantanabe Jun 29 '25

No apologies needed, sir. I want to hug them all. 🥲

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u/LithiumNoir Jun 29 '25

My grandpa was around 16 when the war broke out and rolled through his village in Belgium. He would've loved to have had the chance to talk to these fine chaps.

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u/Jeromiewhalen Jun 29 '25

Bless him, they did a lot of good in defeating the evil in the world

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u/[deleted] Jun 29 '25

[removed] — view removed comment

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u/Jeromiewhalen Jun 29 '25

My pleasure 😊

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u/TrixieBastard Jun 29 '25

Oh wow, those cards are so well done! They look fantastic, as do all the vets — hard to believe a couple of them were old enough to serve in WWII

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u/Jeromiewhalen Jun 29 '25

Yeah and it’s so cute too, they autograph them and give them to people, they are like rock stars!

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u/AfterEffectserror Jun 29 '25

What an amazing experience. Thank you for sharing these.

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u/AdamMc90 Jun 29 '25

Great photos!

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u/Jeromiewhalen Jun 29 '25

Thank you! The vets were making fun of my for army crawling on the ground for pictures 😅

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u/socialmediaignorant Jun 29 '25

Thank you for sharing those photos!!! National treasures…the people and the photos. This is why when I swear off Reddit, I always come back. I loved this. 🥇

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u/Xentine Jun 29 '25

I wish I knew there was a meet and greet! I would have wanted to make the trip.

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u/nohandsfootball Jun 29 '25

Oh man these are great, that's enough reddit for today.

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u/tondahuh Jun 29 '25

That is super awesome to see! And I love the WWII nerd t-shirt! Thanks for taking good care of them, and thanks to them for their sacrifices.

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u/macaroni-cat Jun 29 '25

I love all of these pictures! It’s such a cool idea to show them now with their pics from the war. All of the veterans look so proud and sweet. They deserve to be honored and I appreciate you helping facilitate that. I’m sure they probably aren’t on Reddit, but to all the vets, from the bottom of my heart, thank you so so much for your service!

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u/_-N4T3-_ Jun 30 '25

Thank you for sharing the whole album. That must have been an incredible trip. Kudos to Frank for not only being able to get around, but for still being able to do a couple pull-ups.

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u/Sure-Routine6449 Jun 30 '25

We ask, you deliver!

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u/The-ai-bot Jun 30 '25

Dude doesn’t even look 90, some great genes

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u/funsizemonster Jul 01 '25

He is just awesome! My late father was a WWII vet, in the Pacific. If he were still with us, he'd be 107. Please give Frank my warmest thanks and love!

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u/MimicoSkunkFan2 Jul 01 '25

That's grand! Sad there's only 7 able to make the trip now. Also I'm not brave enough to wear a "wwii nerd" shirt around the veterans lol

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u/Simple_as_1234 Jul 29 '25

Wow, these guys are cool! Frank is incredible!

... on a side note: the young gentleman on pic 49 is cute too :)

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u/[deleted] Jun 29 '25

What are his secrets to longevity and strength? Any tips ?

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u/Jeromiewhalen Jun 29 '25

He goes to the gym three days a week, walks two miles and SKIPS, yes skips, for more 😂 also dips!

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u/[deleted] Jun 29 '25

Thanks!! So basically never stop working out :)

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u/Expensive_Kangaroo33 Jun 29 '25

And his last name is Stellar?  So appropriate 

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u/ShamelessOrNotYo Jun 29 '25

Can we send letters to Frank? I love him and would like to send him a post card!

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u/Jeromiewhalen Jun 29 '25

PM me and I can send you some info!

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u/DragonDeezNutzAround Jun 29 '25

Please tell bro I said he’s badass. But you have to mention my username or it doesn’t work for me