WWII Veteran Starts #MohawkChallenge to Spread Cheer During the Pandemic

A 96-year-old former World War II paratrooper shaved his hair into a mohawk to pay tribute to his fallen comrades and spread cheer amid the coronavirus pandemic.

Veteran Guy Whidden of Braddock Heights, Maryland, first wore a mohawk to intimidate German soldiers the day before taking part in the Normandy landings with the 101st Airborne Division when he was 20 years old, he told local media. His lieutenant made him shave it off a few hours after he got the new hairstyle.

Whidden was the only member of his squad to escape D-Day alive, the Frederick News Post reported.

Wanting to spread joy during the coronavirus lockdown, Whidden asked his granddaughter, Lydia Arshadi, to help shave his hair into a mohawk similar to the one he wore before D-Day. Arshadi shared photos and a video of the process on Facebook.

“I feel like a young buck!” Whidden says in the video.

In the Facebook post, Arshadi wrote, “When a 96-year-old wants to do something you do whatever he wants!” Since encouraging others to partake in his #MohawkChallenge, veterans shared photos of their own new hairstyles. Credit: Lydia Arshadi via Storyful