KANNAPOLIS, N.C. — People in Concord paid tribute to a World War II veteran from the community on Thursday.
Thomas "Tom" A. Farebrother, 97, passed away on Tuesday, Nov. 23, at an assisted living facility in Concord, North Carolina.
Farebrother was a Purple Heart recipient and also received three Bronze Star Medals and American Theatre Ribbons for his service during World War II.
He joined the Navy in 1943 after graduating high school in Cleveland, Ohio, and served as a Signalman.
After retiring in 1985, he and his wife Mary relocated to the Carolinas.
He was a leader at his church and in the Boy Scouts. He was a member of the VFW and served on Purple Heart Chapters. He once traveled to Washington, D.C. on a Stars and Stripes Honor Flight, which his loved ones said he counted as one of his greatest honors.
The World War II Museum in New Orleans calculates the number of living veterans that remain from the conflict. As of Dec. 30, 2021, that number is little more than 240,000. More than 6,600 remain in North Carolina and about 3,000 remain in South Carolina.
A memorial service for the veteran was held at 11 a.m. on Thursday, Dec. 30, at All Saints' Episcopal Church. The event was open to the public.
His ashes will be interned next to his wife and their parents will happen at the Brooklyn Heights Cemetery in Cleveland, Ohio, at a later date.
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