Robert L. Strayer

Lieutenant Colonel Robert Lytle Strayer (March 2, 1910 – December 18, 2002) was a United States Army officer during World War II. As a Major, in 1942 he was given command of the 2nd Battalion of the 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 101st Airborne Division. In 1945 he was made Second Officer (XO) of the 506th PIR, and his position as 2nd Battalion CO was filled by Major Richard D. Winters. During his service he earned four Bronze Stars, one Silver Star and one Purple Heart. Strayer married Mildred Strong, an Army nurse, on January 12, 1942. He retired from the army after the end of World War II. Strayer and his wife settled down in Pennsylvania where Strayer found work as an insurance salesman. In 1978 the couple retired to St. Petersburg, Florida, where Strayer died December 18, 2002. His wife died on July 5, 2009. They are both interred at Arlington National Cemetery.

Strayer was portrayed in the television miniseries Band of Brothers by actor Phil McKee.