MEMORIAL DAY: AT 105, CAPE MAN AMONG FEW WORLD WAR I VETERANS

Hap Goodman was born during a time when America wasn't at war.

But the 105-year-old veteran has lived through a battle with the Spanish, two world wars and conflicts in Asia as well as other smaller skirmishes across the globe.

Goodman was born May 26, 1894, in Carmi, Ill., when the United States was still recovering from the division of the Civil War and had yet to enter the Spanish-American War, which came in 1898.

Goodman turned 105 Wednesday and celebrated with his family and friends Sunday at the Missouri Veterans Home. About 70 relatives, including his children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren from Wisconsin and California, attended the party. His family released 105 red, white and blue balloons to commemorate the event.

Goodman began his military career by enlisting in the U.S. Army in 1916. He fully intended to spend time in Europe or overseas but wasn't assigned to such a tour. He is one of few remaining World War I veterans in the area.

Instead, Goodman spent four years training men who had been drafted to serve in the Army. The training was held at a base near Long Island, N.Y. He was also stationed in Oklahoma during that time.

If the war had lasted about a month longer, Goodman would have been sent "across," he said.

He told a story about how he went to see a four-star general hoping to get sent to the battlefields. Instead the general told him, "'They've got you tied up just like me'," Goodman said.

After leaving the Army, Goodman lived in Scott City. He owned Goodman Lumber Co. and a coal yard while also working for Cottonbelt Railroad for nearly 40 years.

During his tenure with the railroad, Goodman said he worked as brakeman, engineer and foreman. "They used me for everything but a conductor," he said. While working in Scott City, Goodman saw the world's fastest freight train, the Cottonbelt Blue Streak. The train traveled from St. Louis to Los Angeles at speeds of 60 to 75 mph, he said.

Unlike the train, Goodman isn't moving as fast as he used to. Despite a major heart attack nearly 10 years ago, he remains in fairly good health. Up to age 97, he still kept a garden in Scott City.

"I'm healthy," he said. "I don't have much pain anywhere." Since his heart surgery, Goodman wears a pacemaker, and his sight is getting progressively worse. He uses a wheelchair so that he doesn't tire from walking.

There really isn't a secret to longevity, though it seems to be genetic for Goodman. His sister lived to be 107 before she died about six years ago.

Goodman said his secret is simple: "I spent the first 70 years of my life without being in the hospital."