"Dick Winters never received the Medal of Honor so many of his colleagues thought he deserved. "But now the former commander of Easy Company, who lives in Derry Twp. and was immortalized in the book and HBO miniseries "Band of Brothers," might get a monument in his honor near the beaches of Normandy, where he led his men on D-Day. "Documentary filmmaker Tim Gray of Kingston, R.I., is trying to raise $400,000 for the project, which has been approved by Winters and his wife, Ethel. Internationally known sculptor Stephen Spears has produced a design, and former Philadelphia Phillies and Boston Red Sox pitcher Curt Schilling, a fan of Dick Winters, will serve as spokesman and narrate the accompanying documentary." Filmmaker plans statue to honor war hero Winters - PennLive.com
Good news. But Major Winters was just a "normal" man. He did some good fighting at Normandy, Holland and at Bastogne. But was he really MoH material?
I don't see him deserving to be singled out for attaining what amounts to celebrity status simply because Stephen Ambrose wrote a book about his unit and HBO made a mini-series about it. Charles MacDonald isn't getting that distinction and he fought as a company commander just as hard or harder as Winter's E company did.
Once again, Hollywood distorts the historical record. Easy Company was certainly an incredible band of brothers, but they were no more blame than the other paratroopers. How about a monument to ALL of the paratroopers?That would make more sense than a monument to a single man. This was a war fought and won by men working together. It seems a bit misguided to construct a stature to one man who never commanded more than a battalion.
I don't think anyone's saying Major Winters was the best soldier of the war, and deserves a MoH based on BoB - at least no sane minded person is suggesting that. But the fact remains he was put in for a MoH for the Brecourt Manor assault on D-Day but someone else in the 101st had already been awarded one that day. Does he deserve one for that action? I can't possibly say, but to be refused one based on a quota system is a pretty poor show, in my opinion. I don't think I like the statue idea.
He might have missed out on a medal, but he ended up with something just as good...public recognition on a grand scale of his achievements. This is more than the greater majority of soldiers recieve for their efforts. Mr Winters has achieved a form of celluloid immortality, whilst the exploits of most WW2 soldiers will go unsung, unseen and unpraised. One is reminded of the Greek hero Achilles, taking his place in Agamemnon's Army for the simple pleasure of having his name remembered for all time. And indeed it came to pass that memories of the Trojan War in this period were the ONLY conflicts that people of the future remembered, so his mother had been correct after all; that if Achilles did not take part in the biggest event the Mycenaen world had ever seen, then only his grandchildren would remember, and then he would be forgotten for all time. Dick Winters is firmly in the public mind for all time, in one of the most important campaigns in history. What a reward for all his hard work.... There is SOME glory in war, it seems....
I don't see why they want to immortalize him. Like stated above, he is just a man. Same as all the guys in that company and in the 101st and in the U.S. army. Personally I don't see any difference in what he has done and what everyone else that did their bit during the war. The simple fact is that he, like many others, was just doing what he felt was right. All the guys that were sent in and saw front line combat were just doing their job and doing what they were trained for. They were doing a more hazardous job than guys in the rear but the guys in the rear were doing the exact same thing... doing their job and doing what they were trained for. Instead of doing a statue of Mr. Winters, why not create one immortalizing the fallen who never made it back to their loved ones. A lot of those kids never had a chance to grow up and raise a family and go on with their lives like Mr. Winters most fortunately has. Ask ANY vet out there and they will tell you that the guy in the foxhole next to him that didn't make that boat home was the real hero. He paid the ultimate price for our welfare and freedom and the freedom of many other countries as well. I don't think its fair to any of those men to erect a statue of a man who was simply doing his job. Erect a statue honoring those men who did their job without question simply because they knew what was right and what was wrong. I don't see them erecting a statue of Bill Guarnere or Joe Toy who both lost their leg. Better yet I don't see them erecting a statue for those boys in that company that were KIA before ever hitting the ground. Just doesn't seem right to me but to each is own. Thats just my .02 cents.
Has anyone actually read all of the short article? In case anyone hasn't here is the rest of the article The monument is not to the man, but to all officers who lead their men on D-Day, it is monument to Leadership. Mr. Winters just happens to be the man whom Tim Gray, the person behind getting all this together, sees as personifying the leadership ability. Maybe this has to do with the success of "Band of Brothers", maybe not. According to the article Mr. Gray has spent much of the past five years filming in Normandy. So, apparently Mr. Gray has some knowledge on the subject of D-Day.
Oh, I agree. He is a remarkable man. Not criticism at ALL of him. But I see from a later post that thhe statue is going to be a symbolic representation of field officers in general. Now that I can support.
