Commemorating the 83rd Anniversary of the "Four Chaplains", the Four Men of God Who Sacrificed Their Lives During World War II So That Others Might Live

WHEREAS, Just past midnight on February 3, 1943, the SS Dorchester, a United States Army Troop Ship laden with 900 troops, seamen and civilians, was passing through the brutally cold waters of the North Atlantic, on its way to deliver support and materials to Allied bases in Greenland. At 12:55 a.m., the SS Dorchester, located 100 miles from Greenland, was hit by a torpedo fired from a German U-Boat. The massive explosion tore through the ship, causing an immediate loss of life. The SS Dorchester began to list with water gushing into the lower decks of the ship; and

WHEREAS, Those who survived the blast were quickly in a state of panic and confusion. Hundreds of survivors hurried towards the deck and then struggled to find the lifeboats as the ship began to sink. Few of the men were wearing life vests, and knew that the frigid waters of the Atlantic below them meant an almost certain death; and

WHEREAS, In the midst of this chaos four Chaplains, George Fox, a Methodist Minister, Alexander Goode, a Jewish Rabbi, Clark Poling, a Dutch Reformed Minister, and John Washington, a Roman Catholic Priest, all First Lieutenants, rushed forward to help their fellow shipmates. They began distributing the limited number of available life jackets and when it became clear that there were not enough available life jackets, they gave up their own so that others might live. They remained on deck until the end, assisting others, and were four of the 670 people who perished; and

WHEREAS, After the war, numerous memorials were created to honor these four Chaplains. A stained glass window in the Pentagon Chapel is dedicated to their memory. In 1960, Congress passed a law authorizing the President to posthumously award a decoration for extraordinary heroism to the four Chaplains in honor of their actions. The Four Chaplains' Medal was presented to their next of kin in 1961. They are also honored with inscriptions upon the Walls of the Missing at an ABMC memorial, the place where the American government honors all service members who were lost at sea. Finally, in the Battery on the southern tip of Manhattan Island, stands the East Coast Memorial. On this site, overlooking New York Harbor, eight large pylons stand with the names and service information of the 4,6 Americans, including the Four Chaplains, who perished in the western waters of the Atlantic Ocean during World War II; now, therefore be it

RESOLVED, That this Senate of the State of Rhode Island hereby commemorates the rd Anniversary of the "Four Chaplains", the four men of God who sacrificed their lives during World War II so that others might live; and be it further

RESOLVED, That the Secretary of State be and hereby is authorized and directed to transmit duly certified copies of this resolution to Mr. Kasim J. Yarn, Director of the Rhode Island Department of Veterans Affairs and Jane Deptula, Rhode Island Marine Corps League Division Chaplain.