![]() |
||
![]() |
01/11/11
- NNHS Newsletter - Band of Brothers
“If you can, find that peace within yourself, that peace and quiet and
-
Richard Winters,
2004 |
![]() |
Dear Friends and Schoolmates,
Today's
Newsletter, honoring the WWII hero,
Dick Winters, who passed away on January 02 at the age of 92, was suggested
by
my
daughter, Adrienne Harty.
Thanks, Webby!
BONUS #1 - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eeWXoYHgmTU&feature=player_embedded - World War II Hero, Major Dick Winters & his Band of Brothers
BONUS #2 - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AN9JX-oT_70&NR=1 - Tribute To Major Dick Winters
BONUS #3 - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jcdXrrjR90A&NR=1 - Band of Brothers - Emmy Awards Ceremony
BONUS #4 - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DttBLt25i-Q&NR=1&feature=fvwp - Steven Spielberg on Tom Hanks and the Real BAND OF BROTHERS
SPECIAL BONUS #5 (now that your eyes
are nicely moistened) -
http://www.angelfire.com/ego/metalliplasty/videos.html - SCROLL DOWN
to the eighth video, Band of Brothers at Empty Tables, created by
my #5 son,
Nathaniel
Harty (Hillsboro HS,
IL - '97) of IL - which in my humble and completely
unbiased opinion is one of the most skillful such videos ever complied.....
Thanks so much, Faniel!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Winters
http://www.nnhs65.com/famous-soldiers.html
http://www.nnhs65.com/famous-soldiers-S-Z.html
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."
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."
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)
From The Associated Press:
PHILADELPHIA (AP) -
Richard "Dick" Winters, the Easy Company commander whose World War II
exploits were made famous by the book and television miniseries "Band of
Brothers," died last week in central Pennsylvania. He was 92. Winters died following a several-year battle with Parkinson's Disease, longtime family friend William Jackson said Monday. An intensely private and humble man, Winters had asked that news of his death be withheld until after his funeral, Jackson said. Winters lived in Hershey, Pa., but died in suburban Palmyra. The men Winters led expressed their admiration for their company commander after learning of his death. William Guarnere, 88, said what he remembers about Winters was "great leadership." "When he said 'Let's go,' he was right in the front," Guarnere, who was called "Wild Bill" by his comrades, said Sunday night from his South Philadelphia home. "He was never in the back. A leader personified." Another member of the unit living in Philadelphia, Edward Heffron, 87, said thinking about Winters brought a tear to his eye. "He was one hell of a guy, one of the greatest soldiers I was ever under," said Heffron, who had the nickname "Babe" in the company. "He was a wonderful officer, a wonderful leader. He had what you needed, guts and brains. He took care of his men, that's very important." Winters was born Jan. 21, 1918 and studied economics at Franklin & Marshall College before enlisting, according to a biography on the Penn State website. Winters became the leader of Company E, 506th Regiment, 101st Airborne Division on D-Day, after the death of the company commander during the invasion of Normandy. During that invasion, Winters led 13 of his men in destroying an enemy battery and obtained a detailed map of German defenses along Utah Beach. In September 1944, he led 20 men in a successful attack on a German force of 200 soldiers. Occupying the Bastogne area of Belgium at the time of the Battle of the Bulge, he and his men held their place until the Third Army broke through enemy lines, and Winters shortly afterward was promoted to major. After returning home, Winters married his wife, Ethel, in May 1948, and trained infantry and Army Ranger units at Fort Dix during the Korean War. He started a company selling livestock feed to farmers, and he and his family eventually settled in a farmhouse in Hershey, Pa., where he retired. Historian Stephen Ambrose interviewed Winters for the 1992 book "Band of Brothers," upon which the HBO miniseries that started airing in September 2001 was based. Winters himself published a memoir in 2006 entitled "Beyond Band of Brothers." Two years ago, an exhibit devoted to Winters was dedicated at the Hershey-Derry Township Historical Society. Winters, in frail health in later years, has also been the subject of a campaign to raise money to erect a monument in his honor near the beaches of Normandy. Winters talked about his view of leadership for an August 2004 article in American History Magazine: "If you can," he wrote, "find that peace within yourself, that peace and quiet and confidence that you can pass on to others, so that they know that you are honest and you are fair and will help them, no matter what, when the chips are down." When people asked whether he was a hero, he echoed the words of his World War II buddy, Mike Ranney: "No, but I served in a company of heroes." "He was a good man, a very good man," Guarnere said. "I would follow him to hell and back. So would the men from E Company." Arrangements for a public memorial service are pending. |
THIS WEEK'S BIRTHDAYS:
Happy Birthday today to My Brother-in-Law, the late
Happy Birthday this week to:
15 -
Skippy Weitz ('57)
AND
Mary Markiewich Hux
('67) of VA;
16 -
Johanne Coates Richardson ('57)
AND
Steve Kiger ('66) of VA;
17 -
Chuck Anspach ('60)
of NC;
18 - Eileen Rash Vaught ('57)
AND
F.A.
Saunders (Hampton HS - '64) of VA!
Many Happy Returns to
You All!
THIS DAY IN THE WAR BETWEEN THE STATES:
http://www.civilwarinteractive.com/This%20Day/thisday0111.htm January 11, 1812 - The Giles Bill was signed into law. It increases the sized of the Army and Navy to 25,000 men. January 11, 1832 - During a regular session of the Virginia legislature, a two week debate began on the abolition of slavery. Pro-abolition forces suffered because they could not agree on a plan for gradual abolition. January 11, 1861 - Alabama seceded from the Union. January 11, 1861 - South Carolina demanded the surrender of Fort Sumter. Major Anderson refused. January 11, 1861 - Federal soldiers seized buildings in St. Louis to prevent them from falling into Rebel hands. January 11, 1862 - Simon Cameron resigned as Secretary of War. January 11, 1864 - The 13th Amendment (ending slavery) to the Constitution was proposed by Senator John B. Henderson of Missouri. January 11, 1867 - Kansas ratified the 14th Amendment: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fourteenth_Amendment_to_the_United_States_Constitution
January 11, 1893 - The odious
Benjamin F. Butler died in Washington, D. C..
|
From Mark Friedman ('65) of
VA -
01/10/11 - "WOW!!!":
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n4_9RNwQxu8 -
Press Campaign by the church of Singapore
AMEN!
Thank you so much, Mark!
|
From
Wayne
Stokes ('65) of VA -
12/31/10 - "Calvin & Hobbes - Snowmen (#10 in a Series of 14)":
Nobody does snowmen quite like
Calvin and Hobbes!
Remember, if
these made you laugh, share the smile with someone else.
![]() ![]() |
FINALLY:
From
Will and Guy's Joke of the Day - 01/10/11:
|
DATES TO REMEMBER: |
1. Friday, January 28,
2011 - Tidewater Friends of Folk Music Coffeehouse - 7:00 PM Wesley United
Methodist Church, 2510 N. Armistead Avenue, Hampton, VA 23666 - SEE:
http://www.tffm.org/coffeehouse.html.
2. Thursday, February 3, 2011 - The NNHS Class of 1955 holds Lunch Bunch gatherings on the first Thursday of every month at Steve & John's Steak House on Jefferson Avenue just above Denbigh Boulevard in Newport News at 11:00 AM. The luncheon is not limited to just the Class of '55; if you have fiends in that year, go visit with them. 3. Wednesday, February 9, 2011 - The NNHS Class of June 1942 meets at noon on the second Wednesday of every other month for a Dutch treat lunch at the James River Country Club, 1500 Country Club Road. PLEASE JOIN THEM. Give or take a few years makes no difference. Good conversation, food and atmosphere. For details, call Jennings Bryan at 803-7701 for reservations. 4. Wednesday, April 13, 2011 - The NNHS Class of June 1942 meets at noon on the second Wednesday of every other month for a Dutch treat lunch at the James River Country Club, 1500 Country Club Road. PLEASE JOIN THEM. Give or take a few years makes no difference. Good conversation, food and atmosphere. For details, call Jennings Bryan at 803-7701 for reservations. 5. Saturday, April 30, 2011 - The NNHS Class will have a Luncheon. Team Leaders are Mickey Marcella (mcmiceli@verizon.net - 757-249-3800), Betty Hamby Neher (bjneher@cox.net - 757-898-5099), and Dr. Harry Simpson (hdsdds@aol.com - 804-694-0346). - CLASS OF 1954 6. Saturday, July 9, 2011 (6:30 PM to 11:30 PM) - The Class of 1971 will hold its 40-Year Reunion at Newport News Marriott at City Center, 740 Town Center Drive, Newport News. For details, contact Richard Rawls at Richard@Rawls.com - CLASS OF 1971 |
PRAYER ROLL
:
http://www.nnhs65.com/requests-prayers.html - updated 12/30/10 |
BLOG: http://nnhs.wordpress.com/ - updated 10/21/10 |
Y'all take good care of each other! TYPHOONS FOREVER! We'll Always Have Buckroe!
Love to all, Carol
==============================================
NNHS CLASS OF '65 WEB SITE: http://www.nnhs65.com
==============================================
Carol Buckley Harty
To donate, click on the Donate Button on the left, or just mail it directly to my home (address available upon request). Thanks! nnhs65@gmail.com
"Theme from "Band of Brothers"
Composed by
Michael Kamen, 2001"Band of Brothers" demo midi sequenced
by Gary Wachtel (GaryW0001@GaryW0001.com)
courtesy of http://garyw0001.com/tv.html
- 01/21/11 (sic)
Images of Dick Winters courtesy of the Associated Press - 01/10/11
Animated Army Flag clip art courtesy of http://www.angelfire.com/ny4/KevsGifsGalore/Patriotic.html - 06/18/03
Hillsboro High School's Topper (Band Version) clip art courtesy of
http://www.hillsboroschools.net/schools/hhs/activities/music2/Band/bio.html
- 06/07/08
Thanks, Mark!
Woodland Camouflage Background used to form Divider Lines courtesy of
http://www.bayonet.net/clip_art/misc.html - 05/26/06
Animated Tiny Birthday Cake clip art
courtesy of
Sarah Puckett Kressaty ('65) of
VA - 08/31/05
Thanks, Sarah Sugah!
Navy Seal clip art courtesy of http://www.onemileup.com/miniSeals.asp - 05/29/06
Hampton High School's Crab clip art courtesy of
http://www.geocities.com/agent99bm/
- 10/02/05
Replaced courtesy of
http://www.hamptonhigh1964.com - 02/17/09
Animated Laughing Elephant courtesy of Frank Blechman ('65) of Northern VA -
10/29/10
Thanks, Frank!