65 Years

We are in the midst of the 65th anniversary of WWII. Sixty five years ago December 16, the Germans broke through the American lines in the Ardennes Forest which started the Battle of the Bulge. Why is 65 significant? Here's the math - an 18 year old in WWII would have been born in 1927 - making them 83 years old today. The average age for an infantry soldier in WWII was in his mid-20's, which would put their birth year in 1920 or so - making them 90 years old today. The 99th Infantry Division Association will have its last reunion this summer.

In 2009, a year that seemed marked by "celebrity" deaths, a couple of deaths went under the radar. For all of you Band of Brothers fans out there, 2009 marked the death of Darrell "Shifty" Powers, the sharpshooting woodsman in the 506th. 2009 also marked the death of Ed Freeman, the brave helicopter pilot that medevacked wounded soldiers out of the battle of the Ia Drang Valley in Vietnam.