WIESBADEN, Germany -- On the evening of March 24, 1945, Soldiers from the 87th Infantry Division of General George S. Patton's Third U.S. Army began crossing the Rhine River at Boppard, Germany through heavy smoke and enemy fire. Seventy years later, the German school that stands next to the crossing site marked the occasion by inviting a U.S. Army chaplain to be their guest and speak to the students.
Chap. (Col.) Carleton Birch, 5th Signal Command chaplain, spoke about living as an American in Germany and about the role of Army chaplains to a class of about 150 upper-level high school students March 25, 2015 at the Kant-Gymnasium in Boppard, Germany.
"I joined the Army because I thought it would be a good thing to be a chaplain in the Army. Our focus is on assisting Soldiers and their families," Birch said.
He talked about his experiences serving in Germany during the Cold War, helping the physically and mentally disabled at an orphanage in Korea, and in providing clothes to the poor in Afghanistan.
"It's not only for the Soldiers, but also for the families," Birch said of Army life. He noted that his oldest two children were born in Germany, and his youngest two children were born in Korea.
Before Birch spoke, students observed a moment of silence then Dr. Alexander Ritter, a teacher at Kant-Gymnasium, gave a brief history of the area during the war and of the U.S. Army's crossing of the Rhine River near the school.
"It's important to connect the pupils by as many points as possible to the world they are living in. You're not able to understand the present without history," Ritter said.
After Birch's presentation the students and faculty went down to the river and stood next to a small marker indicating where the river crossing had taken place 70 years ago, then released red, white and blue balloons together into the air.
Ritter said he has students with many different political and social views, but reminds them all, "You should never forget that if the Americans didn't do that job in World War II, we never would have had the chance to grow up in freedom and liberty."
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5th Signal Command's mission is to build, operate and defend network capabilities to enable mission command and create tactical, operational, and strategic flexibility for Army, Joint and Multi-national forces in the EUCOM and AFRICOM areas of responsibility.
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