Oldest living Marine Corps veteran passes away at age 107 January 15 Dorothy (Schmidt) Cole enlisted in the Marine Corps at the age of 29 following the attack on Pearl Harbor. (Marine Corps) The nation’s oldest living Marine veteran died of a heart attack on Jan. 7. Sgt. Dorothy “Dot” (Schmidt) Cole enlisted in the Marine Corps in 1943 after the attack on Pearl Harbor. The 29-year-old initially had attempted to join the Navy two years earlier but was told she didn’t meet their height standards. The Marine Corps recognized Cole, born Sept. 19, 1913, in Warren, Pennsylvania, as the oldest living Marine in 2020 on her 107th birthday.