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On 4 December 1987 <em>Charles Grant “Rojo” Goodrich</em> was laid to rest where he was born and raised, Augusta, Georgia. At his request there was no fanfare. But it was the culmination of an active, useful and eventful life in the service of his country. His passing was noted with deep regret by classmates, many friends, and by the former prisoners of war whom he led through the eye of the needle.</p>
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Rojo’s roots were deep in Augusta. Both his parents were born there. He attended Marion Military Academy to prepare for West Point. He was appointed by Congressman Carl Vinson.</p>
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At the Academy he was distinguished by his red hair, his wit, and his fine voice. He was on the fencing team all four years, and graduated at the top of the middle third of his class of 260.</p>
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Rojo chose flying for his career and earned his wings in November 1929. His active pre-war flying career was marked by service in observation, bombardment, pursuit and attack formations, including service in the Canal Zone. More importantly, he served briefly in the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) and for four months he flew the air mail when President Roosevelt directed the Air Corps to take it over—a very rich and varied pre-war service which brought him and his classmates into World War II destined to play a major role.</p>
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In August 1941, he was given command of the 12th Medium Bomb Group (B-25’s) as a major, AUS—a clear indication of his performance as a flyer and leader. He took this group across the Atlantic, across largely uncharted Africa, and into action with the British in Egypt in July 1942, as one of the first United States combat units to see action in the European-North African theater.</p>
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On 13 September 1942, while leading his group on a night bombing sortie over Sidi Hanish, Egypt, he was shot down and made a prisoner of war by the Germans. He was badly injured in the process and spent several months in the hospital before arriving, in December 1942, at the main Luftwaffe prison camp in Poland called Stalag Luft III. Here he immediately became the senior American officer by virtue of his rank—a position and responsibility he was destined to hold in various camps until the end of the war.</p>
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Commonly held perceptions of life in prisoner-of-war camps tend to reflect a demoralized, apathetic crowd of men waiting for war’s end. This was not the case in Rojo’s camps. Here, under his leadership, the war continued unabated. Escape activity, intelligence collecting, and constant demands on the Germans to meet the terms of the Geneva Accords were the order of the day. Discipline inside the wire was similar to any Air Corps organization. A broad scope of camp activities maintained high morale and physical and mental health. While these efforts produced only small results in the overall war effort, they were crucially important for the well-being of the several thousand prisoners under Rojo’s authority.</p>
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He and the men of his camp were deeply involved in the organization, planning, and digging of a tunnel, which later resulted in the escape commonly referred to as “The Great Escape” in March 1944. As a result of his aggressive policies vis-a-vis the Germans, his camp continuously attracted the closest surveillance and security efforts of the German authorities. He and his two thousand or more men relished this diversion of the German war effort.</p>
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On 27 January 1945, the Germans on short notice forced the evacuation of Stalag Luft III in the face of the Russian advance. Thanks to Rojo’s foresight, his camp was well prepared for the exceedingly difficult forced march in severe winter conditions. There were no casualties from his column, and when the proper time came he encouraged escape, and 32 men jumped train en route to Bavaria. His leadership and control set an example for the several other groups in this extremely difficult evacuation.</p>
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After the war the men from Rojo’s camp never lost contact and have held reunions regularly ever since. They were close-knit as a result of the leadership he provided them in the camp. They were indeed a band of brothers and many a happy night has been spent at reunions with Rojo and his guitar, recapturing the high points of the more than two years spent together under the stress and uncertainties of war.</p>
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Rojo was awarded the Air Medal and the Purple Heart for his combat service, and the Legion of Merit and the Order of the British Empire for his leadership as a prisoner in Germany. His postwar assignments included service in Headquarters, United States Air Force, Fourteenth Air Force, Continental Air Command, Tactical Air Command and the Air War College. He retired for physical disability in the grade of colonel in 1955, after 27 years of service to the country.</p>
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Rojo is survived by his devoted wife, Connor Cleckley Goodrich, of Augusta, Georgia. Connor’s first husband, James Dyess, was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor for action in the Pacific in World War II. Her daughter, Connor Dyess Smith, who is married to Major General Perry M. Smith, USAF (Ret), will soon move to Augusta.</p>
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One does not look for heroes among prisoners of war, and they are very rare. But every now and then one finds a leader whose vision, courage, and tenacity brought thousands of young men home safely when they were lost souls in a total war.</p>
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Rojo was one of these, and none of those thousands will ever forget him.</p>