From the Sommers

This is making another round. I don't remember if I sent it to you or not. Have a tissue handy.

Love,

Mary

Life is not about waiting for the storms to pass. It is about learninghow to dance in the rain. This is a Memorial service for Shifty, a WWII VET This is a Memorial service for Shifty, a WWII VET I owe him and you owe him! No, he didn't sing "You ain't nuthin but aHoun' Dawg, or dance "Thriller." He did oh so much more! We're hearing a lot today about big splashy memorial services. I want a nationwide memorial service for Darrell "Shifty" Powers. 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 June 17, 2009 after fighting cancer. There was no parade. No big event in Staples Center . No wall to wall back to back 24x7 news coverage. No weeping fans on television. And that's not right. Let's give Shifty his own Memorial Service, online, in our own quiet way. Please forward this email to everyone you know. Especially to the veterans. Rest in peace, Shifty.

Mark Pfiefer,

Employee Dow Jones

Tom Sommers ' report and update on Jim's recent surgery

Dear MaryAnn,

Thanks for the positive update on Jim. Please give the big guy our very best and tell him to continue on a fast road to full recovery. Wonderful news!!

I have added Chuck to this again so we can get the good news into the blog for the OAT Australia gang.

Love, Tom

Response to MaryAnn and Jim from the Sommers:

Dear MaryAnn and Jim,

Oh my goodness!!! Give Jim our very best and thank you ever so much for letting us know about his turn of events. Yes, Jim is in good shape as shown by all our hiking about Tasmania and Australia; so we figure it must be too many of those wonderful waffles that you served to us when we were there in July, ha! Really, we are very, very happy to know that Jim came through the operation well and is on the road to recovery --- his good health going into this event is what will allow him to recover quickly and totally. Nice that the family is there to help out.

Chuck, since Nancy and I are down in Carlsbad with the Grandchildren while Steve and Mary are in London/Paris, I was hoping you could put this note up on the Australia Blog because I am sure all our OAT friends will want to know about Jim and be able to send him best wishes for a speedy recovery.

Cheers, Tom

News from MaryAnn and Jim on health update:

H!Just want to give you a little update on Jim and his recent bypass surgery. Today he is now 2 weeks post-op! I'd venture to say he is very glad these 2 weeks are in the past!Every day he looks better & better; although it will be a slow process. He has started cardiac rehab & continues with his walking every day. Three out of our 4 children have been here already & I think it has done them a world of good to see their Dad improving. It sure gave them a scare! Ken, our oldest arrives this Thursday for a week so I know he'll be a big help too.Thank you so much for your notes of concern!

MaryAnn & Jim

Life is Sweet and my memory is short

I loaded this video awhile back and have experienced a senior moment as to why I loaded it in the first place, other than it got my attention and ended up as something, for that moment, I thought should be added to the blog. Click to open the link and video below:

http://yeli.us/Flash/Fire.html

Sommers' visit with Jim and Maryann

During a little five week road trip around the western part of the USA (as far east as St. Louis), Nancy and I had the chance to have a wonderful visit with Jim and MaryAnn Roch while in Cedar City, UT. Utah is a remarkable state and where the Roch's live is really in a wonderful part of our great country. To the east are some really superb mountains and roads to travel, as well as some of the best National Parks in the country. MaryAnn and Jim fixed us a superb Brunch (highly recommended for those passing through - especially if you like waffles, ha!) and we had a great time "remembering" our fun trip together to Australia and Tasmania. Here are a few pictures showing the Roch's home and a couple of the four of us (plus one granddaughter). Hope everyone is doing well and enjoying life to the fullest. Cheers, Tom and Nancy Sommers

Sommers' New Year update

Hi there everyone. As the New Year gets going, we thought it might be interesting to put out a little update on our first month's activities. Nancy and I are doing just fine and recently celebrated our 40th anniversary. Our kids put on a surprise party for us with all our dear friends in attendance --- yes, the Milams drove all the way down to Carlsbad from LA and were there with smiles. After that, Nan and I took off for a short driving trip up the CA coast to the San Simeon area (Hearst Castle). Stayed in a nice beach-front motel and did the obligatory visit to Hearst Castle (neat place, but William Hearst must have been a tad bit off center to build it in the first place), but the highlight of the vacation was watching the elephant seals do there thing right there on the beach just up the road from where we stayed. Let me tell YOU, we got the full show from these seals. Two beta males chased each other, neck wrestled, and the weaker one was finally driven out into the ocean! His pursuer was not about to give up. Then periodically we’d hear some female yelling her lungs out as some big, 5000 lb alpha galoof, with the weirdest nose, hauled ass up the beach and jumped her bones. He would pin her down with one of his front flippers and let me tell you, it was quite a show. Ha She’d screech and he’d sort of make this whinny sound (not unlike humans, ha). They’re not a very family oriented lot. The male doesn’t care who he fools around with, doesn’t know her name, wouldn’t recognize her face later. The females give the pups one month to chow down, get it together, and then hasta lavista baby, she’s off to the ocean. Pup is left to learn to swim and fend for himself. As for the pup, he’ll nurse at any port in the storm, so to speak. He’s not particular and it doesn’t seem like the mothers are, although we did watch one mother protect her pup when another female was trying to take her pup. The pups also got an up close and personal x rated movie during all of this. The pup would attempt to stay near the mother, hoping to continue nursing, but it was clear he was left out in the cold while “dad” got his jollies. They looked sort of forlorn and befuddled by the whole event. So there, have I given you enough details to satisfy your curiosity?? This is a "must see" for OATers; so be sure to plan a trip that direction one of these days. Big trip planned for us this year is not an OAT one --- we are going to do a six-week driving trip around the US, first going up north to Idaho and Montana, and then back east as far as Saint Louis before coming west via Colorado and all places in between. Should be fun. All for now. Cheers, Tom and Nancy

Happy New Year from The Sommers and The Milams

To our fellow travellers on the OAT Ultimate Australia trip: