Four chaplains who gave their lifejackets to others and perished when a troop ship was sunk in the north Altantic in World War II will be honored at a service in Langley Feb. 3, the 59th anniversary of the event.

To commemorate the heroic actions of the chaplains, Veterans of Foreign Wars Island Post 7482 will have a special service at 7 p.m. in the United Methodist Church, Langley. Pastor David Vergin will narrate their story, while post members will give brief biographies of the chaplains.

The post hopes to let residents know that, although most casualties in war are combatants, chaplains and other non-combatants also have opportunities to perform heroic acts and even pay the ultimate price.

The incident occurred Feb. 3, 1943, as the U.S. troopship Dorchester, part of a north Atlantic relief convoy, was hit by a torpedo from a German U-boat off the coast of Greenland.

The Dorchester was badly damaged and began to sink. When the order came to abandon ship, it became apparent there were not enough lifejackets for all the crew and troops on board. The four chaplains, representing four different faiths, gave their lifejackets to others so they might have a chance to live.

As the Dorchester disappeared beneath the waves, the chaplains were seen standing together, arms locked, with their heads bowed in prayer.

There were 672 lives lost in the sinking of the Dorchester. However, 230 survivors were picked up by three Coast Guard cutters escorting it. Four of those survivors could thank the chaplains for their lives.

Glenn Nichols, commander of Post 7482, said the service is intended to pass the story of these four chaplains to people who haven’t heard about it and to draw attention to all chaplains who were killed in combat.