As America’s veterans from World War II pass from society’s landscape, there are fewer and fewer to remember the sacrifices and glories of a generation. Lt. Colonel John Hampton, a retired Marine, is the personification of a group quickly disappearing and a shining reminder of the enduring relevance of Memorial Day for us all. His story may serve as a way to remember those before us who have given so much.

On Monday, May 24, 1010, John Hampton will celebrate 103 years of adventures, accomplishments, and accolades. When hospice nurses Jennifer Natsch and Kari Rayford met him for the first time, they knew he had a story to tell. His bright eyes and charming banter delighted the residents and staff at Deer Hill Care Center in Lafayette as well as the team from Hope Hospice.

Hampton’s full life has included stints in journalism, public relations, and the military. After a career in the newspaper business, John joined the Marines and began a journey filled with opportunity and challenges. He recalls, “The Marine Corps commissioned men with certain abilities. I applied and was sent to officer training camp in Quantico, VA. A few weeks into the training, during a snow storm, we were dumped in a forest one dark night with a compass and flashlight and told to find our way back to camp!” After he graduated and got ‘those silver first lieutenant bars pinned on my shoulders’, he worked in the cryptology office at USMC Air Station in Santa Barbara coding and decoding messages and later served in Japan, the Philippines, and Hong Kong.

His most notable accomplishment came in 1947 when Hampton worked as a public information officer for the Marine Corps Reserve in Los Angeles. Fellow Marine reservist Major Bill Hendricks, the public information officer at Warner Brothers, had an idea for helping needy children. Hendricks drafted Hampton to help organize a toy collection. He and Hendricks decided to place a toy barrel in a Warner Brothers theater entrance. The sign on the barrel read: Toys for Tots…a campaign that would eventually become a national effort.

The first year Hendricks and Hampton recruited other reservists who collected 5,000 toys for children in the Los Angeles area. Based on the success of that first campaign, the Commandant of the Marine Corps directed every Marine Reserve Unit to conduct a local Toys for Tots campaign. In support, Walt Disney designed the first promotional poster for the nationwide campaign in 1948 and also designed the three car train logo that continues to serve as the official logo of Toys for Tots today.

Looking back, John Hampton doesn’t boast about his ties to the famous program which has distributed over 419 million toys to 195 million needy children in the US, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands. “He’s very modest, “says his daughter, Clare Revelli. “He has always harbored a soft spot for children,” she added.

Hampton’s 103rd birthday will be celebrated at Deer Hill Care Center with much fanfare. Sharing the day with his daughter, fellow residents, staff members, and Hope Hospice nurses, John Hampton has much to be proud of.