To the Editor:

Guilderland resident Austin Hutton was born 100 years ago — on Saturday, Nov. 2, 1918. Woodrow Wilson was president, and the Spanish flu pandemic, which had claimed the lives of an estimated 20 million to as many as 100 million lives around the world, was beginning to wane.

World War I was still raging in Europe, and would continue right up to Nov. 11. On that day, the last American soldier to die in World War I combat, Henry Gunther, was killed one minute before the armistice went into effect.

In the next 100 years, Austin would bear witness to enough significant events, discoveries, inventions, and innovations to fill volumes. He would see humanity at its very best — and at its very worst.

Four months after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, Austin enlisted in the United States Army. He was 23 years old at the time. After basic training, Austin was assigned to the 92nd Machine Records Unit in Fort Knox, Kentucky. A short time after D-Day Normandy, Austin stepped ashore at Utah Beach. His ultimate objective was Paris, where he was assigned to the Central Machine Records Unit as a supervisor.

On Saturday morning, Oct. 27, about 30 of Austin’s friends from the World War II Veterans and Friends Breakfast Club, which gathers regularly at the Home Front Café in Altamont, surprised him with a birthday party. The morning started off with a proclamation from Senator George Amedore, followed by cards and gifts from all over the country, and two birthday cakes!

The Home Front Café has been home base for the four years the Breakfast Club has been gathering. We cannot imagine a better venue for what we do, nor can we imagine better hosts than Cindy and Jack Pollard.

To learn more about the World War II Veterans and Friends Breakfast Club, find us on Facebook @hfcbreakfastclub, or contact us at hfcbreakfastclub@aol.com.

Mark Yingling

Clifton Park