Georgia WWII veteran Charlie Duncan celebrates 106th birthday with honors, memories

Happy 106th birthday, Charlie Duncan!

A World War II veteran is celebrating a major birthday. Charlie Duncan will turn 106 years old on Tuesday.

COBB COUNTY, Ga. - A Georgia World War II veteran is celebrating a major birthday. 

Charlie Duncan is turning 106 years old on May 27.

What they're saying:

"Nobody in my family lived past 84. Here I am 106," said Charlie Duncan.

Friends and family held a birthday party for him at Rally Point Grille in Woodstock on Sunday. 

"There were 62 people there. We had a good lunch and had a sit-down lunch," said Charlie.

Inside the restaurant there's a photo of Charlie on the wall.  He's a World War II veteran.  He was sworn into the US Army on his 25th birthday. 

After the military, Charlie came home to the Cobb County and Cherokee County areas. He says over the last 100-plus years there have been a lot of changes. 

"This was all farm land. Highway 5 was a little two-lane road," said Charlie. 

He says he wouldn't want to step back in time. 

"It was a hard life on the farm back then, especially during the depression. You couldn't get a job making 50 cents a day," said Charlie. 

Charlie spent 37 years in the mill work industry. He retired when he was 62 and kept busy.

"I had a big garden and I had a workshop in my basement," said Charlie. 

He has two children, grandchildren, and was married a total of 83 years. 

"Thirty-nine years to my first wife and 44 years to my second wife," he said.

These days, he spends time with family and occasionally attends veteran luncheons.

"There was five of us sitting around a table. World War II veterans," said Charlie. 

He says he was the oldest; The others were just in their 90s.

It's also very likely he was the most active. He says he square danced for decades.

"We square danced for 37 years. My wife and I did. Square dancers came up here when I was 103, and they wanted me to get up and dance, and I did. Then they came back this year and wanted me to dance, and I said no, I'm too clumsy," said Charlie with a laugh.

He was also a water aerobics fanatic, all the way up until last fall.

Charlie says that's what's kept him going all these years. 

"Stay active, that's all I got to say: stay active and eat well, eat fruits and vegetables," said Charlie.

What's next:

Tuesday evening, on Charlie's 106th birthday, he will be honored with a proclamation at the Cobb County Board of Commissioners meeting.