Pluggers by Rick McKee for June 11, 2016

I hope the majority of the male classmates from ‘44 weren’t killed in the War.

We have lost a good number of our classmates—none by Vietnam or other ‘hotspots’. They have passed by natural causes, by accident or my taking one’s own live—sad to say.

In South Carolina don’t look for anyone from the class of ’47. That was the first year of requiring 12 years of school instead of 11. Both of my parents were the class of ’46 and one of my uncles and one aunt were supposed to be the class of ’47 but had to attend the extra year and wound up as the class of ’48. I think I have the years correct but I could be one or two years off. :)

I’d be over 100 for my 72nd college reunion.

They’d be 94 or so. That’s not a Plugger, that a Lucky to Still be Alive! God Bless Them!

My parents were married in 44…I was born in 48, my brother in 52, hubby also in 52, best friend also in 52. We are all baby boomer pluggers.

Somebody said “At a certain age, you can have your class reunion in a booth at Denny’s.”"

Received this from a veteran friend the other day:

“Shifty” By Chuck Yeager

Shifty volunteered for the airborne in WWII and served with Easy Company of the 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment, part of the 101st Airborne Infantry. If you’ve seen Band of Brothers on HBO or the History Channel, you know Shifty. His character appears in all 10 episodes, and Shifty himself is interviewed in several of them.

I met Shifty in the Philadelphia airport several years ago. I didn’t know who he was at the time. I just saw an elderly gentleman having trouble reading his ticket. I offered to help, assured him that he was at the right gate, and noticed the “Screaming Eagle," the symbol of the 101st Airborne, on his hat.

Making conversation, I asked him if he’d been in the 101st Airborne or if his son was serving. He said quietly that he had been in the 101st. I thanked him for his service, then asked him when he served, and how many jumps he made.

Quietly and humbly, he said, “Well, I guess I signed up in 1941 or so, and was in until sometime in 1945…” at which point my heart skipped.

At that point, again, very humbly, he said, “I made the 5 training jumps at Toccoa, and then jumped into Normandy . . . do you know where Normandy is?” At this point my heart stopped.

I told him “yes, I know exactly where Normandy is, and I know what D-Day was.” At that point he said, ”I also made a second jump into Holland , into Arnhem.” I was standing with a genuine war hero… and then I realized that it was June, just after the anniversary of D-Day.

I asked Shifty if he was on his way back from France, and he said, “Yes… And it’s real sad because, these days, so few of the guys are left, and those that are, lots of them can’t make the trip.”

My heart was in my throat and I didn’t know what to say.

I helped Shifty get onto the plane and then realized he was back in coach while I was in First Class. I sent the flight attendant back to get him and said that I wanted to switch seats. When Shifty came forward, I got up out of the seat and told him I wanted him to have it, that I’d take his in coach.

He said, ”No, son, you enjoy that seat. Just knowing that there are still some who remember what we did and who still care is enough to make an old man very happy." His eyes were filling up as he said it.

And mine are brimming up now as I write this.

Shifty died on Jan. l7, 2012 after fighting cancer.

There was no parade.

There was no big event in Staples Center.

No wall-to-wall, back-to-back 24×7 news coverage.

No weeping fans on television.

And that’s not right!

Let’s give Shifty his own memorial service, on line, in our own quiet way. Please forward this email to everyone you know; especially to the veterans.

Rest in peace, Shifty.

Chuck Yeager, Maj. General [ret.]

From Michael—-The first thing in my class (1977) wanted to do was “move as far away as possible”. Which explains a lot of missing people.

neverenoughgoldGreat story. Of course “the very model of a modern major general” was no slouch in that department either. Although that was the objective, I would question Arnhem, that being a British operation, Nijmegen was the US target..I never understood why they tried for the “Bridge Too Far” instead of turning left at Nijmegen. That would have cut off the Scheldt, trapping a half dozen German divisions with no means of support, and freed the port of Antwerp for a shorter supply line. But I was only 12 at the time and raised that question much later.

Darling, you are growing older.

hippogriffThe reason I brought up Market Garden was that I had a cousin-in-law-in-law (our wives were first cousins) who flew a glider into Nijmegen, but never would discuss it although active in the glider vets group. I was hoping someone might pick up on it and comment.