A New Iberia veteran had a triple digit birthday this week and his family decided for the celebration the sky was the limit.
"A good person, he's a Christian man and he's retired from the army," said Judge Keith Comeaux. "He had so many hats he wore in his life and he's just a wonderful person."
At 102 years old, Dracos Burke has lived a life worth celebrating.
According to Burke's nephew, D.C. Roane, Dracos was one of the pillars of Iberia Parish and his community.
The New Iberia native is a beloved father and friend with an impressive professional resume. He served as assistant district attorney until the age of 70.
"I learned more from Dracos Burke probably than any other combined lawyers that I've tried cases against," said Judge Comeaux. "He was stern but he was fair. He knew the law, you watched him in court, you looked up to Dracos Burke."
And that was only his second career.
Just out of college and for the 30 years that followed Dracos was in the military. First the army, then the air force, as he rose in the ranks as a skilled pilot.
This inspired family and friends in Acadiana to serve as well.
"It meant so much to me to have him a part of my life and inspire me to go into the service," said Roane. "And I thought someone else could read and see and hear about his life experiences and inspire them to serve as well."
This inspiration is what's being celebrated in a big way on Burke's 102nd birthday.
"There's an organization called Dream Flights, and this is a group of volunteers that has WWII aircraft and they go around the group and find WWII veterans and take them for a ride," said Roane.
His friends and family will send him off on the Dream Flight as Dracos continues to prove that in life the sky is the limit.
Dracos Burke's Dream Flight takes off at 9:00 am on Friday morning from the Acadiana Regional Airport.
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