2022 Man of Year: Sam Folsom

2022 was not a kind year for the reputation of America’s oldest generations. Time and again, we saw this country’s elderly denizens cling to positions of power, sacrificing not just their own dignity but that of our institutions in the process. Consider the California senior senator at 89 who is currently a senior citizen. forgotten her longtime colleagues’ names. Instead of spending time with his grandchildren, our 80-year old president refuses acknowledgement of one of them even exists.

At a time when Americans are in need of a positive example from this country’s seniors, they should look no further than Samuel Folsom. Folsom, who was 102 years old, died in Los Angeles last month. lifetime His bravery, sacrifice, loyalty, and service to his country.

Folsom, of Peabody, Mass., was a U.S. Marine fresh out of flight school in 1941 when he was thrust into World War II following Japan’s attack on Pearl Harbor. Folsom, 22, and his 40-pilot squadron faced off against the Japanese Air Force’s technologically superior Zeroes. Folsom had never flown high altitude, and had fired only one shot from his Grumman F4F Wildcat gun during training in California.

“Our experience was more than limited,” Folsom explained. “It was almost nonexistent. But we went.”

With the odds against him, Folsom not only survived the horrific Guadalcanal campaign, he thrived—the lieutenant got his first kill in a dogfight with a Zero, firing on and outmaneuvering the fighter until it began smoking and plummeted to the ocean.

“I poured in the rest of my ammo and he went into a spiraling dive,” Folsom said, “disappearing into a cloud at about 3,000 feet, still heading earthward.”

But it was the following day’s foray against the Japanese that saw Folsom pull off his greatest feat of the war.

Flying at high altitude with his squadron, Folsom spotted dozens of Mitsubishi bombers flying just over the ocean’s surface, on course to attack American ships. Folsom jumped in to attack his prey and let loose his.50 caliber guns on the enemy bomber, even though he was being shot back by the tail gunner. Folsom swiftly moved on to the next target, after the enemy pilot was killed.

Folsom took the second bomber and played cat and mouse with the Japanese pilots.

*As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases