Statesboro’s American Legion Dexter Allen Post 90 will hold a service Sunday to honor the historic courage of the “Four Chaplains,” who became legend in the aftermath of a torpedoed Army transport ship in World War II.

The free event is set for 2 p.m. Sunday inside the Emma Kelly Theater of the Averitt Center in Statesboro.

The program will offer prayers and a dramatic presentation of the sinking of the ship and the actions of the chaplains during the tragic sinking.

The story of the chaplains – a Catholic, a Jew and two Protestants – is one of commitment and bravery. Each, John P. Washington, Alexander D. Goode, George L. Fox and Clarke V. Poling, was moved by the attack at Pearl Harbor and each wanted to serve God by ministering to men on the battlefield.

On the night of Feb. 2, 1943, the chaplains were among 902 on board the U.S.A.T. Dorchester headed to an American base in Greenland. With reports of German U-boats in the area, a torpedo from U-233 struck the Dorchester at 12:55 a.m. Feb. 3.

Following the attack, the chaplains remained calm as panic spread. They first distributed life preservers and assisted others to abandon ship and finally gave up their own life preservers to save young soldiers. In the end, witnesses reported seeing them come together in prayer as the ship sank.

One survivor, Private William B. Bednar, found himself floating in the icy water after the explosion surrounded by dead bodies and debris.

“I could hear men crying, pleading, praying,” Bednar is quoted as saying on the Four Chaplains Memorial Foundation website. “I could also hear the chaplains preaching courage. Their voices were the only thing that kept me going.”

In the end, 230 of the Dorchester passengers were rescued, leaving 630 dead, including the chaplains.

In the aftermath of the disaster, the story of the four chaplains gained popular notice. In December 1944, they were each awarded the Purple Heart and the Distinguished Service Cross for their valor. Memorials across the nation, including a stained-glass window in the Pentagon, honor the chaplains.