Chicago-area WWII veteran celebrates 100th birthday

RIVER GROVE, Ill. - A local veteran and WWII hero just turned one hundred years old. 

Family from around the country came to celebrate Jerry Netolicky of River Grove as he marked the milestone. 

"I feel great. Everybody talks to me and says, you don't look 100," Netolicky said. "It's been a tough life but a good life."

Netolicky entered the Army at the age of eighteen. He served overseas in Guam during the war as a machine gunner. His role was to guard the airfields. Jerry doesn't talk about what he saw at war but fondly remembers growing up in Chicago. 

"Every Sunday at home we had dumplings, sauerkraut and pork. We used to call slow death. So, there you are, I'm still here," he said with a laugh.  

Netolicky married the love of his life at the age of 49 and has one son, who is a firefighter in Skokie.  

"God willing, I'll be around for a while," Netolicky said.