(CNN) When a World War II veteran turned 99, he had one regret. He had an opportunity earlier in life to meet some of the last living Civil War veterans, but he didn't go.

Now 100-year-old Sidney Walton is giving people across the country the chance to meet one of the last living World War II veterans.

Walton has been on a mission to visit all 50 states over the past year and a half, and he passed the halfway mark earlier this month. He's made it to 26 states, meeting with governors and anyone who will hear his story.

He wants people he meets to remember the sacrifice World War II veterans made, especially as there aren't many left. Fewer than 400,000 of the 16 million Americans who served in World War II are alive, according to US Department of Veterans Affairs statistics.

In April 2018, Walton started sharing his message. He decided to leave his home in San Diego and meet with governors of each state as a way to reach a large number of people.

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