Fourteen Jewish military chaplains who gave their lives in service to their country finally have a place of honor in Arlington National Cemetery.
On Oct. 24, a Jewish chaplains memorial was unveiled on Chaplains Hill.
The monument features a plaque inscribed with the names of the 14 Jewish chaplains who died while serving during World War II, the Cold War and in Southeast Asia. It stands beside separate monuments honoring fallen Protestant and Catholic chaplains that have been present on Chaplains Hill since 1981 and 1989, respectively.
The unveiling marks the culmination of several years of effort to create a memorial for Jewish chaplains.
The push began with a discovery by amateur historian Ken Kraetzer of White Plains, N.Y., related to the famous story of four World War II chaplains — two Protestants, a Catholic and a Jew, Rabbi Alexander Goode — who perished aboard the USS Dorchester in 1943. As the troop transport sunk after being torpedoed by a German submarine, the four chaplains gave away their life jackets to other military personnel, prayed and consoled others aboard.
The Catholic and Protestant chaplains were memorialized on Chaplains Hill, but there was no recognition of Goode or other fallen Jewish chaplains.
The realization set off a whirlwind of activity by Jewish groups and other supporters of a Jewish chaplains memorial. Ultimately, a congressional resolution was approved unanimously in May.