Dick Winters, WWII hero of 'Band of Brothers,' dies

Morlar

Dick Winters, WWII hero of ‘Band of Brothers,’ dies


This is already mentioned in the Military Forum and after hours so it seems odd not to have a thread on it in the WW2 forum. The news was released in an odd manner given that he actually died on January 2nd - the news was withheld to give the family some privacy.


He always came across as a scrupulously decent man and by all accounts extremely brave and much loved by his men.

Some of the comments here are worth reading imo.
http://voices.washingtonpost.com/postmortem/2011/01/dick-winters-dies-wwii-hero-co.html

http://news.yahoo.com/s/yblog_thelookout/20110110/ts_yblog_thelookout/dick-winters-wwii-hero-chronicled-in-band-of-brothers-dies

Dick Winters, WWII hero of ‘Band of Brothers,’ dies

Dick Winters, a highly decorated World War II hero who became a household name when his heroics were chronicled in a Stephen Ambrose book that later became the HBO miniseries "Band of Brothers," has died. He was 92.

A very private and modest man, he died last week but requested that the news be withheld until after the funeral, a family friend told the Associated Press.

After enlisting in the Army on Aug. 25, 1941, the Pennsylvania native enrolled in Officer Candidate School, eventually being commissioned as a 2nd lieutenant in 1942. He was assigned to the 506th regiment of the 101st Airborne Division -- known as Easy Company -- and was deployed with his regiment to land by parachute in France on D-Day, June 6, 1944.

By leading the takeover of a German artillery bunker on Utah Beach, Winters and his company saved countless lives from relentless cannon fire -- an action that earned him the Distinguished Service Cross, the second-highest honor an American soldier can receive. Winters and Easy Company later fought near the Belgian town of Foy during the Battle of the Bulge, liberated the German concentration camp at Dachau, and occupied Hitler's mountainside retreat, Eagle's Nest.

In 1945, one of Winters' soldiers, Floyd Talbert, wrote a letter to Winters from his hospital bed to express appreciation for his leadership in battle.

"You are loved and will never be forgotten by any soldier that ever served under you," Talbert wrote. "I would follow you into hell."

Below is a brief video that opens with Winters talking about being a leader, and follows with some of the soldiers who were under his command talking about his exploits:

Shaken by what he experienced in war, Winters reportedly vowed to live a simple life if he managed to survive, and that's just what he did. After returning home, he married his then-girlfriend, Ethel, bought a farm in Pennsylvania and raised a family. He reportedly never talked about his war experiences until Ambrose came calling in the hopes of documenting Easy Company's role in winning the war. Winters said he honored Ambrose's request because he felt it important for future generations to learn about the war, its consequences and the sacrifices made by soldiers. He later wrote his own memoir, "Beyond Band of Brothers."

Click image to see more photos of Winters


Via AP

Winters was leading a quiet life of farm retirement in Hershey, Pa., when "Band of Brothers" turned him into a minor celebrity. People who knew him say that he never really became comfortable with life in the spotlight. He had fielded countless requests for interviews and personal appearances over the past decade or so, most of which he turned down.

Winters was, by all accounts, exceedingly modest. When someone would ask him whether he considered himself a hero, he would usually respond by saying, "No. But I served in a company of heroes." Chroniclers of the World War II era, however, such as legendary NBC newsman Tom Brokaw -- who detailed the lives of Winters and others like him in his "Greatest Generation" series of books -- beg to differ.

"Dick Winters was the quintessential American infantry officer -- brave, canny and modest," Brokaw told The Lookout. "His heroic leadership of the Band of Brothers is a one-man course on how to become a warrior without losing your humanity."

(Photo of Winters: AP/Laura Rauch)

PS I'd go along with the sentiment of the a.h. thread and ask people NOT to thank this post.

Zemuppet

Rest in peace Mayor Winters. You are and always will be a hero to you men, your family and to those around the world who know what you and your men had sacrificed to help bring Europe into peace in a time froth with bloodshed and oppression. You will be missed.