Woman believed to be nation’s oldest veteran dies at age 110

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The Oakland County medical examiner’s office said Emma Didlake died on Sunday in West Bloomfield, north-west of Detroit.

Emma Didlake, a longtime Detroiter and America’s oldest living veteran, passed away at age 110 on Sunday morning – just weeks after meeting President Barack Obama in Washington.

President Obama released a statement Monday that reads in part: “Emma Didlake served her country with distinction and honor”.

Didlake visited the White House in July, where the President praised her service and commended the dedication and sacrifice of all veterans, with a special nod to the women and African-Americans who broke down barriers in the military. She served about seven months stateside during the war, as a private and a driver.

Last month she visited Washington with help from the Honor Flight Network. After her service, her family moved to Detroit where she became an active member of that city’s chapter of the NAACP. “However, in the short time we spent with her, Miss Emma impacted our group and we’re so proud to have had the chance to honor her”.

During her visit to the White House, Didlake wore a patriotic-themed neck scarf and sat in her wheelchair in the same spot in the Oval Office where foreign leaders sit when they meet with Obama. But when her granddaughter asked her if it was “fantastic”, her grandmother beamed like a schoolgirl, saying, “Yeah”.