Award honors medical providers
Dr. Elizabeth Whalen, Albany County health commissioner, has received the 56th annual Four Chaplains Brotherhood Award.
The Albany Post 105 of the Jewish War Veterans’ Four Chaplains Brotherhood Award Selection Committee unanimously selected her to receive the award on the behalf of medical providers across the Capital Region.
Richard Goldenberg, committee chairman, said the committee recommended her selection “as the best way to honor all health care workers in the region combating COVID -19.”
Whalen received the award during the Jewish War Veterans Remembrance ceremony earlier this month at the First Reformed Church in Schenectady. The presentation will be posted to the public at 2:30 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 28, at https:// www.1streformed.com. Remarks will also be posted.
“We are holding this ceremony in the Poling Chapel of First Reformed Church, named in honor of the Rev. Clark V. Poling, who came to serve this church as pastor in the spring of 1938,” said Senior Pastor Lynn Carman Bodden in her welcoming remarks. “His story and that of three other chaplains, Father Washington, Rabbi Goode, Reverend Fox, and their sacrifice on behalf of others aboard the SS Dorchester on February 3 is what gathers us here.
“People of this church have seen the self-sacrifice of Poling and the others so that others might live as an enduring example of faith in action and the best of humanity,” Bodden said. “I know we are blessed to keep the memory of February 3, 1943, alive not just in story, but to show our continuing faith in action and to recognize the deep humanity of others who serve sacrificially — as the health care workers of this state and across the world have done in the face of the battle against COVID this past year.”
“We have just come through a year of extraordinary strife and struggle brought on by the perils of a 100-year pandemic, and the challenges go on,” said Fred Altman, commander of Albany Post 105 during the ceremony. “Such times often bring out ordinary people who heed a call to service and they step up and perform extraordinary acts of courage, sacrifice and service for the good and survival of others. Our honoree, Dr. Elizabeth Whalen, has answered the call, not only in her own capacity as the Albany County Commissioner of Health, but also by her example as a most fitting representative of all of the front-line healthcare providers in this war against the virus.”
“Our work at the Albany County Department of Health involves a collaborative effort of all staff,” Whalen said. “I consider myself very lucky to work side by side with such committed public servants.”
The award commemorates the Army chaplains and first lieutenants Rev. George L. Fox, a Methodist minister from Lewiston, Pennsylvania, Rabbi Alexander D. Goode from Brooklyn, Dutch Reformed Rev. Clark V. Poling from Schenectady, and Father John P. Washington, a Roman Catholic priest from Newark, New Jersey.
With troops below decks, at approximately 1 a.m. a German enemy torpedo ripped into the Dorchester’s starboard side. The explosion tore a hole near the engine room from below the waterline to the top deck.
The Four Chaplains appeared on the steeply sloping starboard side. Calmly, they guided men to their lifeboat stations. They distributed life jackets to men who had left theirs below deck. When these ran out, each chaplain, without hesitation, removed his jacket and gave it to the young soldiers desperately searching for help and guidance as the ship sank.
Finally, with arms linked as a symbol of their common bond, the Four Chaplains remained on the deck, each praying in his own way, but to the same God, as the Dorchester slid beneath the cold North Atlantic waters.
Of 904 aboard, 605 were lost. It was one of the worst American naval disasters of World War II.
Whalen has served as county health commissioner since 2015. She participates in Albany County Executive Daniel Mccoy’s COVID-19 briefings and updates.
She completed her residency at the Albany Medical Center in 1998. From 2010-2015 she worked as a preventive medicine resident. She earned a master's in public health through a program overseen by the University at Albany and the state Department of Health.
Whalen is certified in internal medicine and public health and preventive medicine. She is also a former Capital District Physicians Health Plan medical director and a former Albany County Health Department medical director.
The Brotherhood Award honors those residents of the Capital Region whose services and devotion in the practice of brotherhood are deserving of recognition in the spirit of the four chaplains, Goldenberg said.
“The award imparts the principles of selfless service to humanity,” he added.
Since 1966, the Four Chaplains Brotherhood Award has honored a local community member each year who exemplifies the values of sacrifice and selfless service of the Four Chaplains. The Jewish War Veterans have recognized civic leaders, community organizers and issue advocates, educators, health care providers and clergy for their humanitarian efforts.
Wounded Warrior Snowfest, March 5-7
STRIDES’ 16th Annual Wounded Warrior Snowfest will be held March 5 to 7.
The veterans and their families can enjoy skiing or snowboarding at Jiminy Peak Mountain resort in Hancock, Massachusetts. Also family activities are planned during a winter carnival at Crooked Lake. With the support of STRIDE’S adaptive programs, veterans will continue to learn how to overcome the challenges of injury and enjoy independence and freedom through recreational activities.
This year’s welcome ceremony will be held at 7 p.m. Friday, March 5, virtually via Zoom. Tickets, at $10, are available online at stride.org/snowfestix. Visit that site to register and/or to make a donation.
Navy veteran Rudy Ruetigger will be the keynote speaker. Other speakers include Chris Gibson, a retired Army colonel and Siena College president, Maj. Pierre Larkin and wounded warriors.