By Anita Todd
WINTER HAVEN – A.B. “Pete” Richards is a proud World War II veteran. Only 17 when he volunteered for the U.S. Navy, his father had to give written permission for him to enlist. The war ended in 1946, two years after he signed up, meaning Richards will soon celebrate his 99th birthday.
Originally from Tampa, Richards said he joined because that’s simply what young men did at the time. His two older brothers were already serving, so following them into military service felt natural.
“We thought we were doing a good job,” he said. “We did whatever we had to do.”
Richards spent 18 months as a medical corpsman stationed in Virginia. Although he was not deployed overseas, he fully expected to be.
“I worked in a hospital and when the ships would come into Newport News (Virginia), we’d go down and get the wounded,” he said.
The Corpsman First Class was later transferred to Washington, D.C., where he worked in the Office of the Bureau of Records for six months.
After the war, Richards was honorably discharged and soon met the love of his life, Evelyn. They were married for 71 years before she passed away eight years ago. Richards went on to graduate from the University of Georgia with a degree in accounting and spent 40 years working in that field to support his family.
At age 50, he and Evelyn made a bold decision—both quit their jobs and moved to Fort Myers to start a seashell business. For 35 years, the couple created artwork and décor from seashells, selling their pieces at arts and crafts fairs across the region.
“We had a good life,” he said.
Together they raised two children, and today Richards enjoys being a grandfather to five and a great-grandfather to nine.
Richards attends Church on the Hill in Dundee, where he met Owen Allen, the person who invited him to the Veterans Day celebration at Winter Haven Christian School.
If he could offer advice to a high school senior with no plans for college, Richards knows exactly what he would say.
“Join the Navy and spend 20 years,” he said. “You get to serve your country, have a good retirement and when you retire, you are still young.”
Richards said he remains proud of his time in the U.S. Navy. During World War II, more than 16 million Americans were members of the Armed Forces – with 40 percent of those being volunteers. The rest were drafted. Currently, only 66,000 are still with us.
“I love my country,” he said. “I wouldn’t change a thing.”
