Donald Eugene Brent was born on December 22, 1916, in Weiser, Washington County, Idaho. He was the son of George F. Brent and Jessie Pearl Martin Brent. He was married to Frances Hope Barber Clack. He served in the 702nd Bomb Squadron, 445th Bomb Group, Heavy, as a First Lieutenant and Pilot of B-24H #42-50324 nicknamed ''Eileen'' during World War II.

On September 27, 1944, during the bombing mission against Kassel, Germany, B-24H “Eileen” was heavily damaged when German fighters launched intense attacks against the scattered bombers of the 445th Bomb Group. Crippled by severe battle damage, the aircraft lost control and eventually crashed in Germany. As the bomber went down, the crew faced a tragic and varied fate. Some airmen successfully bailed out and survived, but were captured and spent the remainder of the war as prisoners. Others also parachuted from the aircraft but did not survive their descent or events that followed. Two crew members remained in the aircraft and were killed when it was struck by heavy cannon fire.

1Lt Brent ordered his crew to bail out; however, his parachute failed to deploy properly, and he was killed in action. He is now buried in the Ardennes American Cemetery and Memorial, Neuville-en-Condroz, Arrondissement de Liège, Liège, Belgium.

Source of information: www.findagrave.com, U.S. Army Air Forces Missing Air Crew Report, www.kasselmission.org