by Kenzie Strange
CRAFTSBURY — Herb “Lance” Harris is one of about 100,000 World War II veterans still living today, out of about 16 million Americans who served in the global conflict. He was born on April 25, 1929, and was only 17 years old when he enlisted in the U.S. Coast Guard at the tail end of the war.
“At that time, everybody was patriotic,” Mr. Harris said. “It was the thing to do.
“I joined actually on my seventeenth birthday,” Mr. Harris said. “I tried to join when I was 16, but they said no.
“I was just going to lie about my age,” Mr. Harris said, “but you needed your parents’ permission” and Mr. Harris’ parents wouldn’t sign for him to enlist until he turned 17….
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