A Tuskegee Airman shared his story this weekend in the Southern Tier.

Lieutenant Herbert Thorpe is one of the original airmen in World War II.

He spoke at Corning Community College on Saturday.

Thorpe was born in Brooklyn and joined the Army in 1942.

He says when he enlisted he had no idea that he would be a part of history.

"I just wanted to do something different than what I was doing. I was home in Brooklyn just after high school with nothing to do. And that's where it started,” said Lt. Thorpe.

Thorpe went on to work as a research engineer for Rome Labs at Griffiss Air Force Base, and served as president for the Rome branch of the NAACP.

Corning's mayor also proclaimed November 3 “Tuskegee Airmen Day.”