Chicago Fire’s Lauren German celebrates her birthday

Former Chicago Fire star Lauren German celebrates her birthday today, so we’re celebrating her character Leslie Shay and telling you where she is now.

Today we’re saying happy birthday to Lauren German, the Chicago Fire alum who remains a fan favorite, even though it’s been four seasons since she was written out of the show.

Lauren was part of Chicago Fire‘s original cast as paramedic Leslie Shay, the partner to Gabriela Dawson (Monica Raymund) and best friend of Kelly Severide (Taylor Kinney).

But when Chicago Fire season 2 ended on a cliffhanger, the writers decided to kill Shay off—not only affecting Dawson and Severide deeply, but changing the makeup of the series forever.

Severide went into his first massive tailspin at the death of his friend, and to this day, Ambulance 61 bears a memorial to Shay on its door. Firehouse 51 has never forgotten her, and One Chicago’s fans haven’t either.

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Leslie Shay was a great character, and Lauren German was excellent in the role; getting rid of her remains one of the most questionable decisions in One Chicago history.

While her death and the story that followed were great TV, there’s a Shay-sized hole at Firehouse 51 that will never quite be filled.

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How would Shay have helped Severide through his father’s death? Or been there for Dawson as she struggled with wanting to become a mother? She would’ve added a new dimension to a number of the storylines we’ve seen since her departure.

The good news for One Chicago fans is, of course, that Lauren German has returned to TV as the star of her own show. She plays Detective Chloe Decker on Lucifer, which aired for three seasons on FOX before being picked up by Netflix earlier this year.

Netflix hasn’t announced when Lucifer season 4 will premiere, but that means more of Lauren for everyone who’s missed her in Chicago. She’s great in that role as well, and as the female lead of the show, gets a tremendous amount of screen time. If you haven’t seen the series yet, it’s worth checking out (her father is played by Chicago Med‘s Louis Herthum!).

But while we wait for that show to start up again, here’s a classic Leslie Shay clip from Chicago Fire to remind you of the character that first stole our hearts:

For the latest Chicago Fire season 7 spoilers and news, plus more on the entire series, follow the Chicago Fire category at One Chicago Center.