LEXINGTON, Ky. — Vaughn P. Drake Jr., believed to be the oldest survivor of the attack on Pearl Harbor, died April 7. He was 106. 

Drake was born in Winchester, Kentucky, on Nov. 6, 1918. He served in the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers during World War II. According to a release, when he was 23, Drake was stationed at Kaneohe Naval Air Station on the Hawaiian island of Oahu during the early morning hours of Dec. 7, 1941, when Japanese forces launched their surprise attack.

"We were getting ready to go to breakfast, and we heard all these planes flying over and making a lot of noise ... we just figured it was the Army Air Corps carrying out maneuvers," Drake told the Lexington Herald-Leader in 2016, per the release. 

Drake also was a veteran of the Battle of Saipan in the Marianas and received numerous accolades, including the World War II Victory Medal and the special Congressional Medal for the Veterans of Pearl Harbor.

After the war, Drake returned to Kentucky and attended the University of Kentucky College of Engineering. He was an engineer for 50 years and also worked for the General Telephone Company for 36 years before retiring in 1981. Drake was also a charter member and past president of the Bluegrass Chapter of the Kentucky Society of Professional Engineers, receiving its "Outstanding Engineer in Industry" award in 1979. He was a life member of the University of Kentucky Alumni Association and Pearl Harbor Survivors Association. 

Drake was husband of Lina Wilson Drake for 65 years until her death in 2011. He is survived by his son, Samuel; grandsons Anthony (Crystal) and Patrick and grandchildren Mya, Clara and Henry. 

“My father never sought the spotlight, but he understood the importance of remembering and honoring history,” Samuel Drake said. “He was proud of his service and proud to be part of a generation that stood up in defense of freedom. To us, he was more than a hero; he was a devoted husband, a loving father and grandfather and a humble man who lived with integrity every single day.”

Visitation will be held Thursday, April 17 from noon to 2 p.m. at Milward Funeral Directors in Lexington, followed by a burial at 3 p.m. at the Winchester Cemetery.