The rumble of decades old radial engines, followed by the crack of rifles rendering a military salute and the ever mournful “Taps” set the stage for the dedication of a monument to Colorado’s own Maj. Gen. Maurice Rose.

Rose was noted for his bravery, leading troops from the front during World War II and being, in his father’s words, “a soldier’s soldier.”

A graduate of Denver’s East High School, Rose was Jewish and the son and grandson of rabbis from Poland. The rise in antisemitism during the 1920s and 1930s did not slow his Army career, though attempting to enlist at 16 did.

During the war, Rose led the 3rd Armored Division, which became the first Allied armored unit to enter Germany.  

Gov. Jared Polis, himself Jewish, was among the speakers at Sunday’s dedication. Rose “died a hero,” Polis said.

He said he hopes the monument outside the Capitol will long serve as a way for more Coloradans to learn and remember his name. 

“He was the first officer of any army to lead a ground invasion of Germany since Napoleon,” Polis said. “This monument will also celebrate another first that he had the honor to fulfill. It’s the first in Colorado to honor a Jewish Coloradan.” 

Polis and other speakers would be interrupted by a total of four flyovers featuring a number of World War II era aircraft.

A flyover of World War II era aircraft during a ceremony honoring Maj. Gen. Maurice Rose, a Coloradan and the highest ranking officer killed in the European Theater. Gov. Jared Polis and other speakers participated in the April 16, 2023 ceremony. (Alex Edwards/The Denver Gazette)

Alex Edwards
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One such aircraft was the famed DC-3/C-47, which dropped thousands of paratroopers immediately preceding the June 6, 1944 landings in Normandy. The subsequent breakout enabled Rose and other Allied units to liberate parts of Belgium and enter Germany. 

Among other speakers was Chaplain Yerachmiel Gorelik, the first Jewish chaplain in Colorado’s Army National Guard.

When he joined it in 2020, a former National Guard general sent him several books about Rose. 

The books helped Gorelik get to know Rose well, despite never having met him. 

“He was an inspiration on every level, and in Judaism we very much focus not just on remembering, but in inspiring,” Gorelik said. “You take the lessons and the values of the individual that you’re memorializing and you find ways to emulate them and push them forward.” 

Specifically, Gorelik highlighted Rose’s commitment to his path of service to country. Rose first tried to join the military at 16, but was unsuccessful. Later, he would join the Army and participated in the Meuse-Argonne offensive of World War I. He remained in the Army and during World War II distinguished himself, earning many battlefield awards.

The memorial and statue will also stand as inspiration, Gorelik said.  

“To have this message of hope and triumph, of strength and resilience, I think is very empowering,” he said. “We can learn from Maj. Gen. Rose that not only do you stand up to (hate), but be proud of who you are; you can have the greatest tremendous effect and offer the only answer to these continued efforts to create hate and intolerance.”

A second flyover of World War II era aircraft at a ceremony dedicating a memorial to Maj. Gen. Maurice Rose in Denver, CO on April 16, 2023 (Alex Edwards/The Denver Gazette)

Alex Edwards
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