Darrell ‘Shifty’ Powers was a member of Easy Company of the 101st Airborne Division in the U.S. Army. He and his regiment performed heroics in Europe, keeping the Nazis at bay, with their endeavors immortalized in the Band Of Brothers TV mini-series.
Shifty sadly died of cancer on June 17, 2009 at the age of 86.
The recent spate of celebrity deaths, most notably of Michael Jackson and Farrah Fawcett, has prompted public grief and mourning on a level I’ve never experienced before. And while it’s right to eulogize those public figures, there are people dying every day.
Is it right to grieve for celebrities and focus on their deaths when ordinary men and women are dying all the time? Some of them, such as Darrell ‘Shifty’ Powers are the real heroes, who risked their young lives to save us all from Nazi rule.
I’m a huge fan of the Band Of Brothers mini-series, watching it on a regular basis. And it’s sad to hear that one of the heroes who inspired the drama serial has died.
Rest In Peace Darrell ‘Shifty’ Powers – March 13, 1923 – June 17, 2009.
