When Donald Robert "Bob" Burgett was born on April 5, 1925, in Detroit, Michigan, his father, Elmer, was 25 and his mother, Lillian, was 19. He had two brothers and one sister. He was among the Airborne troopers who landed in Normandy early on the morning of D-Day, as a member of Company A, 1-506 Parachute Infantry Regiment, 101st Airborne Division. Burgett served as both a rifleman and a machine-gunner. He ended his military service as a Sergeant. After the war he became a writer. He died on March 23, 2017 and is now buried in Great Lakes National Cemetery, Holly, Oakland County, Michigan, USA.