Richard C. "Dick" Higgins, one of the last Pearl Harbor survivors, died this Tuesday at the age of 102. According to his granddaughter, Angela Norton, the veteran died of natural causes at his home in Bend, Oregon.
Higgins served as a radioman assigned to a seaplane patrol squadron based at Naval Base Pearl Harbor. He was there on December 7, 1941, when Japanese planes bombed the Hawaiian base.
During an interview published in Texas History, the veteran described that he was in his bunk inside a screened-in lanai on the third floor of the barracks when the bombing began: "I jumped out of my bunk and I ran over to the edge of the lanai and just as I got there, a plane went right over the barracks," he said.
Furthermore, during the conversation, he recalled the "big red meatballs" he saw, alluding to the red circular logo that was usually painted on the wings and fuselages of Japanese planes: "So, there was no doubt what was happening in my mind, because of the things that had been going on."
Remembering fallen heroes, Richard C. Higgins' primary mission
After surviving the attack, Higgins dedicated much of his life to teaching others about what happened, not to gain fame, but to recognize the work of the people who had fallen, as his granddaughter stated in statements to The New York Times:
He never thought that he was a hero; the heroes were those who didn’t come home. But he wanted to make sure their stories continue to be told, and we remember what an incredible country we live in and what sacrifices they made for us to have our freedoms.
For this reason, he joined the Pearl Harbor Survivors Association when it was founded in 1958. Twenty-two other survivors are still alive and part of the group, according to the California state president of the Sons and Daughters of Pearl Harbor Survivors, Kathleen Farley. She claims there might be more survivors, as some individuals did not register with the association.
