This vet went viral.
A 98-year-old World War II and Korean War veteran has become a social media star, with fans around the world saluting him for his service — thanks to a 26-year-old neighbor.
Ross Longo, of Lake Placid, Fla., has lived next door to Sevastian Munguia-Barajas and his parents for over 20 years, and since he does not have any relatives nearby, they welcomed him into their family.
“They adopted me, and I adopted them,” Longo told The Post.
“I consider him my grandpa, honestly,” added Munguia-Barajas, whose family moved Longo into their home last month.
The friendship went viral last year when Munguia-Barajas launched the TikTok and Instagram account @your98yearoldvet to document and share their everyday adventures.
“One day I recorded our normal day, which was, I went over there, we went to go get breakfast and I took him to the grocery store. I think that video had like a million views overnight,” he recalled.
The “Ross the Vet” page is now filled with clips of everything from Longo giving life advice to trips to Taco Bell, Wendy’s and Chick-fil-A, to the pair spending holidays together and paying it forward by helping other veterans in need.
They’ve brought a birthday cake over to a Vietnam vet who lives alone and is battling cancer and donated Longo’s used reclinersand a scooter to other veteransin Highlands County, which they and around 15,000 vets call home.
“Today, I paid for someone’s breakfast who was a veteran. I do that often, just to show appreciation to them because a lot of these guys get walked past,” said Munguia-Barajas, who was awarded a Good Neighbor Grantfor his altruistic work by the nonprofit Fosters Outriders.
A son of Italian immigrants, Longo, who was born in Connecticut and raised in St. Louis, Mo., signed up for the Navy in 1943 at just 15, although the minimum age to enlist was 17. That’s because he lied about his age, which was common at the time.
“And they never asked no questions; they took me,” he said. “I went and took the physical, passed it.”
Longo chose that branch, where he served for six-and-a-half years, because of his older brother.
“My brother and I were real close. He joined the Navy when he was 17 … And I told my mom that I’m gonna go with him, which never happened, but I did get to see him though at boot camp,” he said.
He was deployed to Europe during World War II and to Korea during the Korean War.
His worst injury was in Korea when he ran off a landing craft and unknowingly jumped into a bomb crater on the beach.
“He laid back on the sand and then he got stampeded. He got knocked out and when he woke up, he was in a helicopter getting put on a boat that had a hospital and he ended up breaking eight of his ribs,” Munguia-Barajas said.
After leaving the Navy, Longo moved back in with his parents in St. Louis, and went on to work as a truck driver, a carpenter and even a country singer.
“Someone was looking for a singer, and his brother encouraged him to go audition,” Munguia-Barajas explained.
“At the time, the only song he knew was ‘Your Cheatin’ Heart’ by Hank Williams … Ross started singing, and before he could even finish the song, the woman stopped him and told him he had the job. The position paid $340 a week, which was more than three times what he had been making driving a dump truck.”
Longo, who was married and divorced twice, collects a pension and Social Security check, but Munguia-Barajas, who manages Longo’s finances, said what he’s taking in is not enough to cover all his needs.
Fans started asking how they could send donations to support him, so he created a GoFundMe page for Longo, which has already raised over $31,000 to cover things such as his in-home caregivers and groceries.
The beloved vet is also getting fan mail from as far as Australia and Hawaii — and his favorite brands, like Omaha Steaks, Crocs, Stouffer’s and Gatorade, have also sent him gifts.
“Every week, we go to the mailbox and he loves seeing what people sent him … he’s getting mail from all over the world, honestly. It shocks him,” said Munguia-Barajas.
“They thank me for my service and that I’m up in age and how blessed I am, whatever,” added Longo.
When asked the key to his longevity, Longo, who doesn’t take any medicine, said: “I have no idea what’s keeping me alive.”
“Spinach. He eats a lot of spinach,” added Munguia-Barajas.
“And he used to have a beer a day.”
“I drank a beer every day until the last six months,” added Longo.
The pair will be celebrating Veterans Day together over a meal and one of Longo’s favorite beers — either Miller Lite or Modelo.
For Longo, the holiday is a reminder of the service that has remained close to his heart for more than eight decades.
“It’s an honor that I served. It means something to me deep down in my heart … I love my country very much,” he said.
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