Piney Woods Civic Club honors local clergy

By Marlene J. Bohr
mbohr@steelcountrybee.com

Song, speeches and speakers came together to make this year’s Piney Woods Clergy Banquet a success. The tables at West Elementary School cafeteria were full with clergy and their families and members of the community.
Guests dined on chicken spaghetti, green beans, salad, rolls and cake.
The guest speaker for the event was Karyn L. Skaar, Ph.D., who is employed by the Northeast Texas Community College. Dr. Skaar is the assistant professor of psychology at the college. Dr. Skaar complimented the clergy for their work and related experiences how her clergy has assisted many times in her life and that of her family.
Bobbie Johnson was mistress of ceremonies and introduced singers Tra Young, Richard Lee and Florence Royal.
Charlesetta Bruce told the story of why the club decided to honor area clergy every year in early February.
“The Dorchester left New York on Jan. 23, 1943, en route to Greenland, carrying the four chaplains and approximately 900 others, as part of a convoy of three ships (SG-19 convoy). Most of the military personnel were not told the ship’s ultimate destination. The convoy was escorted by Coast Guard Cutters Tampa, Escanaba, and Comanche.
The ship’s captain, Hans J. Danielsen, had been alerted that Coast Guard sonar had detected a submarine. Because German U-boats were monitoring sea lanes and had attacked and sunk ships earlier during the war, Capt. Danielsen had the ship’s crew on a state of high alert even before he received that information, ordering the men to sleep in their clothing and keep their life jackets on. Many soldiers sleeping deep in the ship’s hold disregarded the order because of the engine’s heat. Others ignored it because the life jackets were uncomfortable.
During the early morning hours of Feb. 3, 1943, at 12:55 a.m., the vessel was torpedoed by the German submarine U-223 off Newfoundland in the North Atlantic.
 

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