Charlie Pearson doesn’t think he’s a hero.

But the Frisco resident fought in some of World War II’s most famous Pacific battles, including the Battle of Okinawa.

“I can’t remember who I talked to yesterday, but I can remember that stuff that’s 60-odd years ago,” Pearson said.

Pearson was a sophomore at Texas A&M when the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor on Dec. 7, 1941. Now 87, he spends most of his time at the Prairie Estates Senior Community with his wife.

After the attack on Pearl Harbor, Pearson quit school and joined the Marine Corps. He went through boot camp and officer’s school before learning fuel artillery and naval gunfire. Equipped with a radio, Pearson was responsible for telling ships where to shoot.

After Pearson’s regiment landed at Okinawa on April 1, 1945, he and his fellow troops were told they were facing 100,000 Japanese soldiers who would defend the island to the death.

“A lot of things went through your mind,” he said. “[It was] unbelievable how frightening it was.”

Pearson owns a farm in Frisco that he has lived on for 51 years. The Pearson Farms subdivision is named after the farm.

Pearson’s stories are well-known among his acquaintances.

“I just think it’s great to hear the sacrifices that older generations made so that we could have the opportunities that we have,” said Aaron Sharp, director of community relations at Prairie Estates, where Pearson’s wife is a resident.

One of Pearson’s stories comes from Okinawa.

He was looking at a map with his company commander, and a bullet shot through the map, killing the commander. Pearson felt something hit his back but couldn’t tell how badly he was hurt. He continued to fight during a violent day when the executive officer and first and second platoon leaders also were killed.

The next day, Pearson went to get something to eat and found his pack full of ground meat and spaghetti, as if a can of food had exploded.

“As I dug through it, I found a Japanese bullet,” he said. “I never did want to run out of chow, so I had several cans in there.”

That day was notable for another reason. It was the day President Franklin D. Roosevelt died, Pearson said, and he and his fellow troops didn’t know who the new president was.

“We were just fighting a war,” he said. “A few days later, a kid from Missouri did tell us that Harry Truman was president.”

Pearson said he fought through April, May and June before the island was secured. After Pearson learned the United States had dropped atomic bombs on Japan — and he didn’t know what atomic bombs were — his regiment was chosen to see if Japan really was willing to surrender.

“We were there to make sure it was not a trick,” Pearson said.

But the war was over, “and I have some pride in being a part of it,” he said.

Still, Pearson said he was only doing his job.

“I was no hero,” he said. “Just whatever they asked me to do I did.”

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