Story by Robert Fluegel

Public Affairs Specialist, Naval Information Forces

Sailors and Department of Defense civilians assigned to Naval Information Forces, Naval Network Warfare Command, Tenth Fleet, Suffolk and Navy Cyber Defense Operations Command gathered to recognize Holocaust Remembrance Day with a ceremony held on May 2.

Rear Adm. Matthew J. Kohler, commander of Naval Information Forces, delivered the observance’s opening remarks.

“This year’s theme is “Learning from the Holocaust, Acts of Courage,” and today, we will highlight one of those acts of courage,” Kohler said. “The courage of an American soldier who was a prisoner of war and who performed a heroic act because of his commitment to his duty, to his men, and to the ideals of a great nation.”

The observance was highlighted by the story of Master Sgt. Roddie Edmonds’ experiences during his 100 days of captivity as an American prisoner of war after he was captured.

Master Sgt. Edmonds, of Knoxville, Tenn., was a noncommissioned officer who participated in the landing of U.S. forces in Europe. He was captured at the Battle of the Bulge in 1944.

Edmonds was held at a Nazi prisoner of war camp near Ziegenhain, Germany, where he was the highest-ranking American non-commissioned officer.

Last year, Master Sgt. Edmonds was honored posthumously for protecting the Jewish prisoners of war under his command. It was the first time a U.S. soldier has been named “Righteous Among the Nations,” an honor from Israel’s Holocaust Remembrance and Research Center reserved for non-Jews who risked their lives to save Jews from extermination by the Nazis.

The Holocaust was the deliberate killing of roughly six million European Jews during World War II by the Nazis. There were other groups of people that were persecuted and killed as well; altogether, the death toll from the Holocaust was estimated to be nine to 11 million.

Kohler concluded his speech by saying, “Courage is not the absence of fear. Courage is doing what needs to be done in spite of fear. Integrity is simply doing the right thing. Master Sgt. Edmond risking his life, exhibited both courage and integrity by his actions, and inspires us to do the same.”

The multicultural committee hosts events throughout the year to raise cultural awareness, morale and support understanding.