“He was a brave man, even to the end of his life,” Johnson said of her father. His funeral service will be held today in Clintwood. Powers, a Dickenson County native, died earlier this week at age 86 following a battle with cancer. “Just like he’d been to the people who know him as a soldier in a. “But he truly was a hero to me,” Johnson said. And for a lot of years, he never even talked much about what he did – unless someone asked him about it. “He never bragged about what he did in the war. “I loved everything about my daddy,” Johnson said. Army unit that fought bravely and fiercely across Europe.īut for Bristol’s Margo Johnson – daughter of Darrell “Shifty” Powers, one of the soldiers depicted in “Band of Brothers” – two more lines could be added to describe her heroic father: “The world truly admired Darrell Powers. That was the tagline for “Band of Brothers” – an award-winning 2001 HBO mini-series drama on the World War II experiences of Easy Company, a U.S. The article below was written by Roger Brown, Bristol Herald Courier.īand Of Brothers Hero, Darrell ‘Shifty’ Powers Dies The information below is from a June 20, 2009, article about Power’s death. The above information was found from Wikipedia. He was 86 years old at the time of his death. Powers died on Jof cancer in Dickenson County, Virginia. Honorably discharged from the Army in the postwar demobilization, he became a machinist for the Clinchfield Coal Corporation. Powers was awarded many medals and decorations including Bronze Star with 1 Oak Leaf Cluster, Presidential Unit Citation with 1 Oak Leaf Cluster, Good Conduct Medal, American Defense Service Medal, American Campaign Medal, European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal with 3 service stars and arrown device, World War II Victory Medal, Army of Occupation Medal, Croix de guerre with palm, French Liberation Medal, Belgian World War II Service Medal, Combat Infantryman Badge, and Parachutist Badge with 2 jump stars. He spent many months recuperating in hospitals overseas while his comrades in arms arrived home long before he did. During the trip to the airfield, the vehicle that Shifty was in was involved in an accident and he was badly injured. Shifty Powers won this lottery after the rest of the company rigged it in his favor by removing their own names, and was set to return stateside. Were it not for Shifty’s keen observations and outdoors experiences, many lives may have been lost, had that enemy weapon not been spotted from a distance of nearly a mile away and amongst a literal forest of other trees.īecause many men serving in the 101st lacked the minimum points required to return home, a lottery was put in place. The “tree” was ultimately discovered to be a camouflaged German artillery piece. One of his most truly remarkable achievements, and a testament to the extraordinary gifts his backwoods upbringing brought to Easy Company, was the story documented in the Ambrose book, Band of Brothers, about the time in Bastogne when Shifty mentioned to his commanding officer that he noticed a tree in the distant forest that was not there just the day before. He was generally considered to be the best shot in Easy Company. Company members say Powers saved many lives that day. Carwood Lipton, Shifty made a heroic attempt and silenced the German with his M1 right between the eyes. While in Foy, a German sniper shot three members of Easy Company, and everyone hid for cover. He also participated in the Allied military operation Operation Market Garden in the Netherlands, and the Battle of the Bulge in Foy, Belgium. He eventually came in contact with Floyd Talbert and the two made their way to Easy Company. Powers jumped into Normandy on D-Day, missing his drop zone. Powers enlisted on Augat Richmond, Virginia. This later proved useful as many of the skills he obtained helped him as a soldier. Shifty spent a great deal of time in the outdoors hunting game prior to joining the service. Powers was born in Clinchco, Dickenson County, Virginia and volunteered for the paratroopers with his good friend, Robert “Popeye” Wynn. The 2011 book Shifty’s War, by journalist Marcus Brotherton, captures Sergeant Powers’ full life story. Powers was portrayed in the HBO miniseries Band of Brothers by Peter Youngblood Hills. Powers “Shifty” was a non-commissioned officer with Easy Company, 2nd Battalion, 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment, in the 101st Airborne Division during World War II.
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