A group of young Jewish boys, who are known as the Ritchie Boys, immigrated to America from places, such as Austria and Germany, during World War II and provided the United States Army with knowledge about the German language, culture and mentality — and one of them will be speaking at the Dallas Holocaust Museum/Center for Education and Tolerance on Thursday.
Ninety-year-old Guy Stern, who is one of just a few remaining members of the Ritchie Boys, will be speaking about the group's heroism at a special event at 6:30 p.m. Aug. 9 at the Dallas Holocaust Museum.
Having received training at Camp Ritchie, which is the Military Intelligence Training Center in Maryland, the Ritchie Boys used their knowledge to help American-born soldiers find out about German equipment, troops, weaponry and strategic plans during the war.
"Their existence was a well-kept secret and, to this day, the exploits and strategic importance of the Ritchie Boys is virtually unknown," according to the Dallas Holocaust Museum website.
Stern, who will be speaking at the Dallas Holocaust Museum event, was born in 1922 in Hildesheim, Germany, and came to America in 1937. In 1942, he was inducted in the United States Army and became a POW interrogator.
The cost of admission to see Stern's presentation is $5 for students, $10 for Museum members and professional educators, $20 for non-members, and there is no charge for Circle of Remembrance Museum members. Anyone who is interested in attending can RSVP to rsvp@dallasholocaustmuseum.org or visit www.DallasHolocaustMuseum.org.