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Local veterans pay tribute to chaplains' sacrifice

Ronda Wertman
·4 min read
Jim Chaney, Dave Frederick, Tom Valentine and Bill Roberts are shown behind the photos of the Four Chaplains that they commemorated during the annual service at Boyce Houser Post 41 in honor of Lt. George L. Fox, Lt. Alexander D. Goode, Lt. John P. Washington, and Lt. Clark V. Poling.
Jim Chaney, Dave Frederick, Tom Valentine and Bill Roberts are shown behind the photos of the Four Chaplains that they commemorated during the annual service at Boyce Houser Post 41 in honor of Lt. George L. Fox, Lt. Alexander D. Goode, Lt. John P. Washington, and Lt. Clark V. Poling.

KEYSER — As an Air Force chaplain, Wayne Gosnell never faced the life-changing decision that the four chaplains on the SS Dorchester did as they sacrificed their lives for their fellow man.

Joining local veterans at Boyce-Houser American Legion Post 41 recently, Gosnell shared in a service to honor the four chaplains and their supreme sacrifice.

Frank Roleff shared the story of the SS Dorchester, noting that at 55 minutes after midnight on Feb. 3, 1943, a German torpedo ripped into the Dorchester, leaving a hole below the water line from the engine room to the deck.

“Lights went out, steam pipes split, and bunks collapsed one on top of another. Dozens were immediately killed, and a wave of cold water entered the ship, drowning more. Nearly one-third died immediately,” said Roleff.

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Of the 902 men aboard, 672 died as the life expectancy in the cold water was about 20 minutes. The Dorchester slipped beneath the frigid waves 25 minutes after being torpedoed.

Working to rescue the 230 survivors, the four Army chaplains — Lt. George L. Fox, Lt. Alexander D. Goode, Lt. John P. Washington, and Lt. Clark V. Poling — offered words of encouragement and prayer.

Dave Frederick shares with guests at the annual Four Chaplains service about Rabbi Alexander Goode, who left behind a wife and four children when he gave his life as the Dorchester sank.
Dave Frederick shares with guests at the annual Four Chaplains service about Rabbi Alexander Goode, who left behind a wife and four children when he gave his life as the Dorchester sank.

“Spread out among the soldiers, there they tried to calm the frightened, tend the wounded and guide the disoriented toward safety,” Roleff said. “The chaplains opened a storage locker and began distributing life jackets and when there were no more lifejackets in the locker, the chaplains removed theirs and gave them to four frightened young men.”

Four life jackets were displayed at the Legion post — symbolic of the sacrifice made by the chaplains.

“When you’re in the military, for me it was serving my country and my fellow man,” said Gosnell, who served in the Gulf War and was also stationed in Germany, Turkey and several bases in the United States.

Tom Valentine speaks of Chaplain Clark V. Poling, the youngest of the Four Chaplains and a seventh generation of ministers in the Dutch Reformed Church. When World War II broke out, he told his father he was not going to hide behind the church out of the firing line.
Tom Valentine speaks of Chaplain Clark V. Poling, the youngest of the Four Chaplains and a seventh generation of ministers in the Dutch Reformed Church. When World War II broke out, he told his father he was not going to hide behind the church out of the firing line.

“You think of the job you were trained to do and you do it without thinking about what might happen,” he said, adding, “I’d do it all over again.”

“As the ship went down, survivors in nearby rafts could see the four chaplains—arms linked and braced against the slanting deck. Their voices could also be heard offering prayers,” said Roleff of the chaplains’ final moments.

“Even though it’s been a suggestion of the national organization, we feel honored to do it,” he said of the ceremony which was reinstated in 2019 in Keyser.

“We feel it’s something that the general public needs to be made aware of. I’m glad national reminded us to do it,” Roleff added.

The year’s program gave more insight into the SS Dorchester so that everyone could picture the cruise ship turned troopship.

“The Dorchester was the largest of three luxury cruise ships built in 1926 in Newport News, Virginia. It sailed the coastal waters from Boston to Miami with accommodations as fine as those of the best hotels on the East coast,” shared Roleff, noting that all suites had private baths, and the 136 other rooms featured oscillating electric fans and telephones.

Top of the line, it featured an onboard freezer for making ice cream, a dance pavilion, live music in the morning and night for dancing or listening. A hostess served tea each day, there were games and a circulating library.

The Dorchester served as a luxury liner from July 1926 until its takeover by the War Shipping Administration (WSA) in January 1942.

To make the ship war ready, she was given additional lifeboats and life rafts, along with weapons. The large windows were reduced to slits and all items that were not needed for sustaining the maximum number of troops to be transported were removed.

“Every available space on board was stuffed with hammocks and cots to accommodate the troops. This former luxury liner designed to carry 335 people now housed 902,” Roleff added.

Local veterans Jim Chaney, Dave Frederick, Tom Valentine and Bill Roberts gave life to the stories behind each of the chaplains who met at Chaplains School at Harvard sharing about the families that were left behind when they gave their lives to save four others.

Standing behind the four life jackets symbolizing the Four Chaplains who gave up their life vests to save four young soldiers, are (from left) chaplain Wayne Gosnell, commander Jim Shumaker and Frank Roleff of Boyce Houser American Legion Post 41.
Standing behind the four life jackets symbolizing the Four Chaplains who gave up their life vests to save four young soldiers, are (from left) chaplain Wayne Gosnell, commander Jim Shumaker and Frank Roleff of Boyce Houser American Legion Post 41.

Locally, Pvt. Charles Cline of Ridgeley was among those killed in action when the ship sank and his body was never recovered.

Roleff noted that in April 1943, Cline's parents, George and Helen Cline, received a message from the War Department which stated, "Your son was a passenger on a ship which was attacked shortly after midnight by an enemy submarine and sunk without warning. After the vessel was struck every effort was made to effect the rescue of those who were aboard. Such efforts were continued long beyond the period of time that human life could survive the elements in the area. The War Department has entered upon its records that your son lost his life in action on Feb. 3."

“Picture with me, you’re one of the four chaplains, the boat is sinking and going under and you say, ‘May the God of love and that of his son Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit be with you now and forever more, amen and amen,’” concluded Gosnell.

This article originally appeared on Mineral Daily News-Tribune: Keyser area veterans pay tribute to four chaplains' sacrifice