Bibliograph

The immortals, the World War II story of five fearless heroes, the sinking of the Dorchester, and an awe-inspiring rescue, Steven T. Collis

Type

Label

The immortals, the World War II story of five fearless heroes, the sinking of the Dorchester, and an awe-inspiring rescue, Steven T. Collis

Language

eng

Bibliography note

Includes bibliographical references and index

resource.biographical

contains biographical information

Illustrations

illustrationsmaps

Index

index present

Literary Form

non fiction

Main title

The immortals

Nature of contents

bibliography

Oclc number

1197543553

Responsibility statement

Steven T. Collis

Sub title

the World War II story of five fearless heroes, the sinking of the Dorchester, and an awe-inspiring rescue

Summary

1943. The SS Dorchester and a small convoy sailed the route from Newfoundland to the Army Command Base in Greenland; a German submarine was hunting the convoy. Four chaplains were assigned to the Dorchester with more than 900 men on board: Alexander Goode, a Jewish rabbi; John Washington, a Catholic priest; George Fox, a Methodist minister; and Clark Poling, a Baptist minister. February 3, just hours from their destination, the Dorchester was torpedoed and sank. The chaplains helped men to safety through the chaos of their badly damaged ship, searched for spare life jackets for those without, and eventually gave away their own life jackets while encouraging men in the freezing waters. Charles Walter David, Jr., a Black petty officer aboard a Coast Guard cutter traveling with the convoy, dived into the glacial water even as hypothermia set in, to try to rescue the men. Collis explores the power of faith and religious conviction to tell the lives of five men who believed in living lives of service and sacrifice for their country and their fellow man

Table Of Contents

Prologue -- Preparing for battle. A divided country ; Training for the hunt ; From the rubble ; A new era of humanity ; Never seen a Jew ; Tidings of days to come ; Preparation of an answer to prayers ; Lost on a mountaintop ; Something deeper beneath ; Shepherds in death's shadow -- War. The final goodbyes ; Entering dangerous waters ; The spies of the Fifth Column ; Into the dark ; Fully clothed with life jackets on ; A muffled explosion and ammonia -- Decisions. Twenty-five minutes in February ; Help in the dark ; Alone ; The worst disaster ; A light in the dark ; Stepping forward ; Legacy -- Afterword

Classification