You wouldn't know it from his quiet demeanor, but Georgia Rep. John P. Yates is one of the most respected men at the state Capitol.
“He’s not a guy who wants to get up there and talk a whole lot, but I wish he would,” said state Sen. Hunter Hill, R-Smyrna, the Senate Veterans, Military and Homeland Security Committee chairman. “He lets his character do the talking rather than his mouth.”
That's high praise coming from a West Point graduate and decorated U.S. Army veteran who served in Afghanistan and Iraq. But there's a good reason why Yates commands such respect:
He is the last World War II veteran serving in the Georgia Legislature.
On this Veterans Day, the 93-year-old Yates will do what he always does: Focus on other men and women who served this country. But discover why many of his colleagues wish the spotlight shone more brightly on him.