Born in 1924 in New Antioch, Ohio to Frank and Marie Vandervort, William is a current resident at the Wilmington Nursing & Rehabilitation Center. Staff, members of his family, and Wilmington Mayor Pat Haley were there Sept. 10, 2024, to celebrate with pizza, cake and snacks.
Richard Foltz | News Journal photos
William Grant Vandervort turned 100-years-old on Sept. 10, with Wilmington Mayor Patrick Haley on hand to wish the Wilmington resident a happy birthday. As part of the festivities at the Wilmington Nursing & Rehabilitation Center, Haley declared that the day would be known as “William Grant Vandervort Day,” celebrating the resident’s 100 years of life.
“I, Patrick Haley, Mayor of the City of Wilmington, Ohio, wish Bill a very happy birthday and, do hereby proclaim September 10, 2024, as ‘William Grant Vandervort Day.’ In recognition of this auspicious occasion of his 100th Birthday,” Haley read from the proclamation. “In witness whereof, I have hereunto set my hand and cause the seal of the city of Wilmington, Ohio, to be affixed to this 10th day of September in the year of our lord 2024.”
Born in 1924 in New Antioch, Ohio to Frank and Marie Vandervort, William is a current resident at the Wilmington Nursing & Rehabilitation Center. Staff and members of his family were there to celebrate with pizza, cake and snacks.
Known as “Bill” by those who know him, Vandervort grew up on a sheep farm just southeast of Wilmington, where he attended grade school in New Antioch and graduated from Wilmington High School.
In 100 years of life, Vandervort served as a Marine in World War II, where he was in the Fourth Marine Division from 1943 to 1945 and took part in the Pacific Front’s island hopping campaign in the Marianas Islands of Saipan, Tinian, and also served during the Battle for Iwo Jima.
