Chaplain tribute set

Other events are being planned by a veterans and clergy group.
NEWTON FALLS -- City council has designated Feb. 6 as Four Chaplains Day in the city.
The date is near the 62nd anniversary of the sinking of the USS Dorchester by a German submarine during World War II. The Dorchester was sunk Feb. 3, 1943.
City officials want people to honor the four chaplains who died in the ship's sinking through prayers at home and at houses of worship.
The Dorchester, a U.S. Army troopship with more than 900 men on board, was sunk in the Atlantic Ocean about 100 miles off the coast of Greenland.
Perhaps more remembered than the soldiers, however, are the four chaplains on the boat.
The four were: the Rev. George L. Fox, a Methodist minister; the Rev. Clark V. Poling, a Dutch Reformed minister; the Rev. John P. Washington, a Catholic priest; and Rabbi Alexander D. Goode.
Despite their differences in culture and background, the men were joined together because of their faith.
After the ship was struck by torpedoes, the chaplains helped men into lifeboats and distributed life jackets, giving up their own as well. The last anyone saw of them, they were standing on the sinking ship, their arms entwined, with their heads bowed in prayer. More than 600 men died.
Newton Falls American Legion will be planning special programs for the observance of the event. Also, area clergymen are planning special programs for the date, which will start the city's Religious Emphasis Week, taking place Feb. 6-12.