Last Memorial Day, Ray Chavez, the oldest Pearl Harbor surviving veteran, was a guest of President Donald Trump at the White House.

The respect shown by the commander in chief during his meeting with one of the oldest members of our Greatest Generation of Americans was evident.

Chavez was a quartermaster on the USS Condor, and on the morning of Dec. 7, 1941, his minesweeper almost ran into a Japanese mini submarine trying to get into the harbor. The enemy vessel was spotted by the destroyer USS Ward, which sank the sub with a shot from one of her deck guns.

Chavez was about to get some sleep when the Japanese planes launched their attack on the Pacific fleet, propelling America into World War II.

Now 106, the San Diego resident stays active by gardening and still works out twice a week with a personal trainer.

Remarkably, Chavez is not even this nation’s oldest living veteran. That distinction belongs to 112-year-old Richard Overton of Austin, Texas, who is also now the oldest man in America and the third-oldest man in the world.

Overton was sent to Hawaii immediately after the Pearl Harbor attack and then served in the Pacific Theater with the Army’s segregated 1887th Engineer Aviation Battalion from 1942 to 1945. He held a number of jobs in the military, serving on a burial detail, base security and as a driver.

Like Chavez, Overton was honored this year with a visit to Washington, D.C., where he was the personal guest of Austin businessman Robert F. Smith, a well-known philanthropist. Overton was given a private tour of the National Museum of African American History and Culture where Smith had donated some $20 million.

Visiting that museum was special for Overton since his grandfather was a slave before gaining freedom in Tennessee and eventually settling in Texas.

That visit to Washington was a highlight in Overton’s long life, but his last few years have not been easy. He now requires costly 24-hour care, and his medical bills total about $15,000 a month.

The Department of Veterans Affairs said it would pay for him to move into an assisted-living facility, but Overton would not give up his Austin home, which he built for $4,000 after returning from World War II.

Since December 2016, a GoFundMe campaign set up by Overton’s family has raised more than $330,000 to help pay for the veteran’s round-the-clock care.

Last summer, his home was updated to make it safer and more accessible. For the first time since he built the home in the 1940s, he enjoyed the luxuries of having central air and heating.

Then last week Overton suffered another staggering blow. Someone stole his identity and emptied his bank account.

His family would not discuss how much was stolen, just that it was a “considerable amount.”

Thankfully, the money from the online fundraising page remained intact since it was held in a separate bank account, and just days ago the bank restored the veteran’s funds.

The bank, Austin police and federal authorities are investigating the theft.

Although he is one of the few supercentenarians, Overton is not your typical poster person for a men’s health magazine.

His cousin Volma Overton attributed his long life to his love of cigars and whiskey.

But when one reporter asked Overton about the secret to a long life, he simply answered, “Don’t give up. Keep on living.”

That seems like a simple formula, but we’re not about to question a person who has had 112 birthdays and lived through nearly all of the nation’s 20th century history, ranging from the dawn of automobile and plane travel to modern digital age technology.

By Jim Zbick | tneditor@tnonline.com