SURPRISE, AZ (AZFamily) — Tom Copeland wears a name tag at a senior living community these days, but he used to wear dog tags.

The 101-year-old World War II veteran received multiple medals for his service, including a Purple Heart and Bronze Star. Now a resident at The Park at Surprise Independent Living Community , Copeland often remembers the war that shaped the world.

“I enlisted on December 7th, 1942, one year after Pearl Harbor and I was 18 years old,” Copeland said.

From combat to diplomacy

Captain Thomas L. Copeland battled through Nazi-controlled Europe until Germany surrendered.

“We fought all the way from Frankfurt to Nuremberg in less than three weeks, and we had to fight all our way,” he said.

Copeland cannot forget the atrocities of the Holocaust.

“They would like t

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