Darrell "Shifty" Powers
| Darrell C. Powers | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Nickname(s) | "Shifty" |
| Born |
March 13, 1923 Clinchco, Virginia |
| Died | June 17, 2009 (aged 86) Clinchco, Virginia |
| Allegiance |
 United States
|
| Service/branch |
 United States Army
|
| Years of service | 1942–1945 |
| Rank |
 Staff Sergeant
|
| Unit | E Company, 2nd Battalion, 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 101st Airborne Division |
| Awards | |
| Relations | -Dorothy Powers (wife) -Margo Johnson (daughter) -Wayne Powers (son) |
| Other work | Machinist |
Staff Sergeant Darrell C. "Shifty" Powers (13 March 1923 – 17 June 2009) was a non-commissioned officer with Easy Company, 2nd Battalion, 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment, in the 101st Airborne Division during World War II. Powers was portrayed in the HBO miniseries Band of Brothers by Peter Youngblood Hills.
The 2011 book Shifty's War by journalist Marcus Brotherton, published by Penguin/Berkley-Caliber, captures Sgt. Powers' full life story. Powers was one of the twenty contributors to the 2009 book We Who Are Alive and Remain: Untold Stories from the Band of Brothers.
Powers was born in Clinchco, Dickenson County, Virginia. His father was an excellent rifle and pistol shot, and taught him how to shoot when he was young. Shifty spent a great deal of time in the outdoors, hunting game prior to joining the service. This experience proved useful later as many of the skills he obtained helped him as a soldier. He learned most of his shooting during this period of time, and he got to the point where he could throw a coin in the air and hit it with a rifle.
Powers graduated from high school and took a machinist course in a vocational school in Norfolk. There he befriended Robert 'Popeye' Wynn, and the two went to work in the shipyards in Portsmouth after finishing the course. When they found out that they were about to be frozen to the jobs, they went to sign up for the Army. Powers enlisted on 14 August 1942, at Richmond, Virginia.
Powers' nickname "Shifty" originated from his basketball days and his ability to be 'shifty' on his feet.
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Wikipedia