Former Waynesboro and Charles Town resident, a WWII veteran, turns 100

Donald “Dusty” Rhodes, a U.S. Army veteran who was a prisoner of war for six months before serving in the Battle of the Bulge in World War II, turned 100 on June 26.

He was honored at the Martinsburg Veterans Affairs Medical Center, where he is a resident of the Community Living Center.

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“The Battle of the Bulge occurred in late 1944, during the wake of the Allied forces’ successful D-Day invasion of Normandy. ... The courage and determination of Mr. Rhodes and his comrades was tested against great adversity,” according to a news release from the VA center.

“Ultimately, the greatest generation prevailed,” the release said, adding that Rhodes returned stateside to build a life with his wife, Ruth “Betty” Rhodes.

They owned a shoe store in Charles Town, W.Va., for many years and moved to Waynesboro in the 1990s. Betty Rhodes now lives at Quincy Village Continuing Care Retirement Community.

Three of their five children were able to attend the birthday celebration, which included the presentation of a Quilt of Valor.