Written by guest blogger Meghan Thomas, Social Studies teacher, Von Steuben Metropolitan Science Center
Von Steuben High School has a new mosaic over room 308, the History Department office, honoring fallen WWII soldier, Sherman Levine (or Levin – both spellings are used). Sherman graduated in the class of 1940 and enlisted in the armed forces. He was serving as a meteorologist in the Army at Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, and was killed in the attack.
Through typical Chicago connections (a former colleague knew Sherman’s niece), I was given documents that gave me some insight into Sherman’s life. He was well liked by his peers. He was athletic and liked picnics and girls. His good friend, Gil, lived in walking distance of his Albany Park home on Harding and Lawrence and eventually on Monticello.
Even in pictures and newspaper articles, Sherman was very likeable, and his death was a tragedy. I decided to have my US History students get to know Sherman like I had.
They read the documents, including a letter from Sherman to Gil, and looked at the smiling photos of Sherman at school and in the army. They wrote eulogies to memorialize him, and suddenly WWII became personal. This was a kid who went to their school, walked the same halls and streets, and had his whole future in front of him. They were moved by his sacrifice.
An art class at Von Steuben agreed to make a mosaic to honor him. It includes the words, “Hey Gil, I’m back” referencing the letter to Gil where Sherman looks forward to returning to the neighborhood and seeing his old friend. The letter said,
“Well time is going pretty fast now, and this place [Pearl Harbor] is beginning to look a whole lot better. But, I’m always thinking about the day when I will walk down Monticello Ave. again and then just before I walk upstairs to my house, I’ll yell across the street, “Hey Gil, I’m Back.”
I showed them the letter included in this post from Von Steuben Principal Varian O’Shea to Sherman’s parents, Mr. and Mrs. Harry Levin. Ms. O’Shea invited the Levin’s to a ceremony dedicating a plaque to Von Steuben Gold Star veterans.
After I read this, I looked everywhere to try to find the plaque which is no longer hanging. I couldn’t find it anywhere in the school. My students and I were disappointed that it is missing.
We decided to try to recreate it, and a club was born. This school year, I started the Von Historians Club. Our mission is to identify Von Steuben students who died in WWII and to make a memorial to them in the school.
I also want my students to research each fallen soldier and find out who they were. Eventually, I hope students can visit their graves both locally and abroad (at least 8 are buried at ABMC cemeteries overseas) and memorialize them. It seems fitting for current Von Steuben students to honor the sacrifice and lives of past students.
How Von Steuben Alumni Can Help Identify All of Von Steuben’s Gold Star Veterans
Currently, we are looking for WWII survivors from Von Steuben, Von Steuben alumni who have knowledge of Gold Star veterans, and family and friends of those who died in the war.
The Von Historians would love to speak with you and add to the stories of this era at Von Steuben. We have identified nearly 30 names of fallen soldiers (see list below) and need help with finding others.
If you have information to share with us about a Von Steuben Gold Star veteran, please send an email to Ms. Meghan Thomas at her Von Steuben email: mmthomas3@cps.edu
Here are two more ways you can contribute information: use the contact page of this blog, and your email will be forwarded to Ms. Thomas. Or leave a comment to this post on the blog saying you wish to be contacted.
Another way to Help Advance Students’ Research and Contribute to a Memorial
We are also fundraising to afford ordering the fallen soldiers’ military files from the National Archives, and to cover the costs of local and eventually international travel. You can help the Von Historians Club achieve their goals by making a contribution to our Go Fund Me. Money raised would go towards ordering files to advance their research, covering travel costs and creating a memorial to the fallen soldiers at our school.
Why This Matters
Von Steuben is a magnet school now and has been for many years, but students are still interested in the history of the neighborhood of Albany Park. Many of them hang out on Foster or Lawrence after school in local stores and restaurants. Many also are immigrants or first generation Americans like their WWII era predecessors whose families came from Germany, Hungary, Russia, Sweden and other countries, looking for better lives in Chicago, and finding a home in Albany Park.
This project is showing them that Von Steuben has always been a diverse and interesting place. It provides a deeper connection to their school and a more empathetic look at history. I’m excited to see where our research leads.
The Von Steuben Gold Star Veterans Identified to Date:
Sidney F. Barr
Raymond Bidwell
Marvin Christensen
Bernard Corman
Howard Dernehl
William Etheridge
Robert Feldman
Saul B. Geller
Howard Hirsch
Henry J. Hotopp
Bernard Kandel
Arthur J. Lang
Sherman Levine
Sidney Lubin
Ralph O. Mansberger
Robert Margolis
Richard G. Monnot
Harold David Roth
Leslie G. Schalla
Sidney Scheiman
Albert Shlay
Charles Solomon
Werner Storch
John J. Terry
Harry S. Tolen
Seymour Tratner
James L. Tuma
William Veeck
John Joseph Weiss
Alvin Winefield
Harold Zlotnick
Joseph William Zutz
Possible Gold Star Veterans (need confirmation)
George B. Busch
Williams Burns
E. Bush
Aaron Cohen
Richard Graff
Benjamin Green
Walter Gregory
Edward Johnson
William Johnson
Warren Koepke
H.E. Mendelsohn
J.M. Miller
Vernon Miller
Robert Nelson
John O’Brien
George Paulos
Bert Peterson
William Rosenthal
Henry Schneider
Robert Schultz
H. Singer
Charles Smith
L. Smith
John Thomas
Below are some pages from the Von 1944 yearbook Remember, you can contribute the Von History Club’s Bring Back the Plaque project at GoFundMe. We’ll post updates on the project’s progress from time to time.
Hello, Thanks for the reply and sorry for taking a while to get back to you. I believe the soldier’s name was Samuel Cohen. I’m still looking into the circumstances of his death. Do you know of any living relatives? I’d love to find out about more about him if anyone has information. Thanks again!
My husband and I both graduated from Von Steuben . He graduated in Feb. of 1947 and I graduated in June of 1948. His parents were friends of someone whose Son was killed at Pearl Harbor. I noticed that there was someone named “Cohen” but we do not think that was his first name and we can’t remember it. His parents were David and Bertie Cohen and they had another son named Alvin. They lived on Avers and then on Springfield. We hope this is some help to you and are very impressed with what you are doing.