Four Chaplains Day
On February 3, 1943, the United States Army Transport Dorchester, with 902 soldiers, sailors, merchant mariners, and civilians on board, was torpedoed by a German U-boat in the North Atlantic. As the ship began to sink, the four chaplains—George L. Fox, Alexander D. Goode, John P. Washington, and Clark V. Poling—calmly helped soldiers board lifeboats, distributed life jackets, and offered prayers. When the supply of life jackets ran out, each chaplain removed his own and gave it to another man. Survivors later reported seeing the four standing together on the deck—arms linked, praying—as the ship went down.
George L. Fox, the oldest of the four chaplains, knew all about war. Lying about his age in 1917, he enlisted in the Marine Corps as a medical corps assistant. He received a Silver Star for rescuing a wounded soldier from a battlefield filled with poison gas, the Croix de Guerre for outstanding bravery in an artillery barrage and the Purple Heart for wounds.
A resident of Vermont, he was a successful accountant and family man when he heard God’s call to the ministry. Fox went back to school and later was ordained into the Methodist denomination. When war came, he once again enlisted, telling his wife, ” I’ ve got to go. I know from experience what our boys are about to face. They need me.” Fox began active duty on August 8, 1942, and served until that fateful morning of February 3,1943.
Alexander O. Goode was an outstanding athlete and scholar also known for his laughter and love of life. Following in his father ‘s footsteps, he became a rabbi While studying for his calling, he joined the National Guard and kept up an active membership. The return of the body of the Unknown Soldier at Arlington National Cemetery had a profound effect on Goode. He attended the ceremonies, choosing to walk the 30 miles rather than drive or take a bus, because he thought it showed more respect. Goode married his childhood sweetheart and was serving a synagogue in York, PA, when World War II broke out. He served on active duty from August 9, 1942, until February 3, 1943.
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Clark V. Poling was the youngest of the four chaplains and the seventh generation in his family to be ordained in the Dutch Reformed Church. When war came, he was anxious to go, but not as a chaplain. ” I’m not going to hide behind the church in some safe office out of the firing line,” he told his father. The elder Poling replied, ” Don’t you know that chaplains have the highest mortality rate of all? As a Chaplain, you’ll have the best chance in the world to be killed. You just can’t carry a gun to kill anyone yourself.” So Clark Poling left his pastorate in Schenectady, N .Y., and enlisted as a chaplain. Just before he left for active duty, Clark asked his father to pray for him — “not for my safe return, that wouldn’t be fair. I just pray that I shall do my duty … never be a coward … and have the strength, courage and understanding of men. Just pray that I shall be adequate.” Poling began active duty on June 10, 1942, and served until February 3, 1943.
John P. Washington grew up poor, scrappy and determined in the toughest section of Newark, N.J. One of nine children born to an Irish immigrant family, he was blessed with a sunny disposition, beautiful singing voice and love for music. He also loved a good fight and was leader of the South Twelfth Street gang when he was called to the priesthood. He played ball with the boys of the parish, organized sports teams and, when war came along, went with his boys” into the Army. He began active duty on May 9, 1942. His wonderful voice, raised in song and prayer to comfort those around him, could be heard until his final moments on February 3, 1943.
