A lifelong passion for flying keeps World War II combat veteran John Gleeson going — that and a commitment to giving back.

Gleeson, 93, of Waikiki, stopped running his own business, John Gleeson Ltd., a mechanical contracting company, in 1995, but he never truly retired.

He volunteers once a week as a career counselor at the Salvation Army Rehabilitation Center in Honolulu, serves as a Hogan mentor-in-residence at Chaminade University and is a member of the scholarship committee for the Pacific Aviation Museum, where he was the original director.

And he intends to keep flying.

“As long as I can,” he said. “I’m still a member of Civil Air Patrol. I joined in 1980.”

He prefers to fly, rather than drive, up to Dillingham Airfield on the North Shore. He’s flown everything, from kit planes to twin-engine Chieftains and, during World War II, a B-24 Liberator. Once commander of the Civil Air Patrol’s Glider Squadron at Mokuleia, he considers the Grob 103 high-performance glider one of his favorites.

When Disney Studio executives were on Oahu doing research for the 2001 film “Pearl Harbor,” he took them on the historical route that the Japanese flew on Dec. 7, 1941. He showed them old radar stations and even coordinated a 7:50 a.m. flyover at the same spot and time of the attack.

“It was a moving experience. I really enjoyed it,” he said.

Retired Marine Lt. Col. Kenneth Zitz, a friend for more than 20 years, calls Gleeson a “tremendous person.”

“He does so much for the youth and adults of Hawaii, and he’s always giving of himself, his time and resources. He’s never looking for any type of credit. He just enjoys working with people, helping them out and encouraging them to do the best they can in life.”

Zitz, who met Gleeson at Camp Mokuleia as he was teaching kids about flying, added, “He’s still going. He’s not sitting back and just watching TV. He’s very active and involved in the community.”

Gleeson grew up in Long Beach, Calif., with a fascination for aviation. He loved model planes as a kid and clipped photos of airplanes from the newspaper.

He enlisted in the U.S. Army Air Corps just after turning 18 following the bombing of Pearl Harbor in 1941. “I wanted to do my part,” he said. Later he also would fly in the Korean War. He and his wife of 71 years, Barbara, moved to Honolulu in 1972. They have three daughters, six grandchildren and 10 great-grandchildren.

As a career counselor at the Salvation Army, where his father once received services, Gleeson has worked with hundreds of young men over the past five years. He reviews resumes, offers advice and encourages people to go to college. He enjoys working with war veterans since, as he puts it, “I’ve been there and done it, so I know about it.”

Having come from a humble upbringing, he tells people that with hard work and persistence, they can accomplish anything. “People give up too easily,” he said. Few might know that he overcame a stuttering problem to get through college and become a successful business owner.

Kyle Karaoka, director of planned giving at the Salvation Army, said besides donating his time, Gleeson has been one of the nonprofit’s most loyal donors, having contributed more than 280 monetary gifts since the mid-’80s.

Gleeson said his Christian faith plays a role in wanting to serve others.

“I want to help,” he said. “If everybody did that, it’d be a better world.”