A World War II veteran, who once flew planes above the North Africa theater, is now gearing up to celebrate his 100th birthday.

"I must have done something right during my lifetime, or otherwise I would not have made it to a 100," Clarence Hicks said.

Hicks will be celebrating his 100 years of life alongside his family.

He says he never wasted a moment of his life, which is why he jumped right into his first career at the age of 16.

"Shortly after Pearl Harbor graduated from high school, at that time you only had to be a high school graduate to be a Navy pilot," Hicks said.

He was so moved by the Pearl Harbor tragedy, he says he did what he had to do in order to serve his country, he enlisted in the Navy even though he was not 18. By 17, Hicks was already an officer. 

He spent the majority of his enlistment as a Navy pilot soaring in the clouds above North Africa's Mediterranean Sea. His main mission, taking down enemy submarines.

"We didn't have sonars back then, so we couldn't find them underwater, so we would catch them on the surface while they were recharging their batteries," Hicks said. "If we would catch them, we would drop death bombs on them."

Hicks says he would also run rescue missions if one of their planes crashed. 

For the past 40 years, Hicks has called the Rio Grande Valley home.

"I'm ready for another hundred, ready to start the second one," Hicks said.

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