T
he life and legacy of Des-
mond T. Doss and his
humble devotion to God
is one that Seventh-day Adven-
tist will not soon forget, but
the world needs to remember.
Born February 7th 1919, Des-
mond Doss lived an exemplary
life as a servant of our Lord Je-
sus Christ. For over sixty years
the church has been captivated
by the miraculous story sur-
rounding the events that took
place on Okinawa’s Maeda Es-
carpment (Hacksaw ridge).
Maeda Escarpment, once de-
clared a holy site of peace by
a 13th century Ryukyu King
named Eiso, was ironically the
site of one of Okinawa’s bloodi-
est World War II battles and
yet it became the literal site of
peace when God showed up to
help Doss save over seventy-
five wounded men. Exposed to
Japanese fire and armed only
with a first aid kit, 77th Infan-
try Division Company B aid
man, Private Desmond T. Doss,
became the first conscientious
objector Medal of Honor recip-
ient. Doss was not just a hero
who saved a few lives, but he
Art Directed by Yoshi Kasahara
Desmond
T. DOSS
Monument & Peace
Project
is visited by tourist from around the
world. On a weekly basis the United
States Military offers a tour of the
was a man that put God and the site to explain the battle and to tell
needs of others before himself, the story of our beloved SDA med-
which ultimately resulted in a ic. However, Maeda Escarpment is
series of supernatural activities popular for more than just being a
displaying the power of God in battle site, but also because it is the
his life. A hero commits one place of ancient castle ruins from the
or two acts of bravery, but Pri- Ryukyu Dynasty. A monument on the
vate Doss was virtually a walk- site would do more than just share
ing Miracle, saving life time and the story of Desmond T. Doss, but it
time again. From April 29th to would be an international witness to
May 21st 1945, without concern the power of the Gospel and establish
for his own safety, he offered the a positive Adventist presence in Oki-
wounded and dying a second nawa Japan (continued).
chance at life without ever hav-
ing to take life.
The Congressional Medal
of Honor citation recounts the
heroism and honors Desmond
Doss for his bravery, and that
resonates with patriotic Ameri-
cans, but the award fails to cap-
ture the elements of the story
that would captivate the Japa-
nese people who often visit the
historic site of Maeda Escarp-
ment. It is the goal of the Des-
mond T. Doss Monument and
Peace Project to erect a monu-
ment that will reach across the
cultural divide between Japa-
nese and Americans by focusing
on the power of God to save life.
Maeda Escarpment is
considered a national park and

While the vicissitudes of war in
Okinawa can still be seen on the faces of
the aged, it is important that the young
learn about the power of God to save,
and the story of God’s faithful servant
Desmond T. Doss does just that. By
building a Monument on Maeda Es-
carpment we will be piling up memo-
rial stones like Joshua did at the Jordan
River for generations to remember what
God did in that place (Joshua 4).
Desmond Doss has been rest-
ing in the Lord since March 23, 2006 af-
ter eighty-seven years of faithful service
to our Lord and King Jesus Christ. It is
the hope of the Desmond T. Doss Mon-
ument and Peace Project that the story
will continue to serve God through
a monument on the site. As a second
project we hope to build a Desmond T.
Doss memorial hall on the property of
the Okinawa International Seventh-day
Adventist Church, which will serve as a
type of Adventist Heritage building for
the Okinawa Mission, as well as a multi-
functional building for church ministry.
The style and size of the monu-
ment, as well as the memorial hall will
A Monument at Veterans Memorial Park of Collegedale, Tennessee
depend greatly on fundraising, but
the goal is to design a monument very
similar to the current monument in
Collegedale Tennessee. There will be
four basic phases of the project.
Phase 1: Raise funds until December 30th
2010
Phase 2: Finalize building plans by Janu-
ary 31st 2011
Phase 3: Complete the construction by
summer 2011
Phase 4: Ribbon cutting and commemora-
tion ceremony summer of 2011
Adventist Chaplaincy Minis-
tries (ACM), a ministry of the Gener-
al Conference and the Okinawa Mis-
sion of the Japan Union Conference,
are working together to accomplish
Our Goal is to raise
Monument $150,000.00
Memorial Hall $50,000.00
Total $200,000.00
this project. If you would like to give
monetarily in support of this minis-
try, please make tax-deductible dona-
tions payable to Adventist Chaplaincy
Ministries, Okinawa Desmond T. Doss
Monument Project. You may give on-
line at nad.adventistchaplains.org or
simply mail your check or money order
to ACM. Please be sure to indicate in
either case that you would like your of-
fering to specifically go to the Okinawa
Desmond T. Doss Monument Project.
If you have questions, or would like to
receive our project newsletter, please
contact Pastor Joel Klimkewicz. Thank
you for your prayers and support.
Written by Ptr. Joel D. Klimkewicz
Online Giving
nad.adventistchaplains.org
Mailed Contributions
Adventist Chaplaincy Ministries
Okinawa Desmond T. Doss Monument Project
12501 Old Columbia Pike, Silver Spring, MD 20904
Pastor Joel D. Klimkewicz
US Phone: 989-220-5623
JP Phone: 81-80-6490-8232
Email: joelk@southern.edu