The Harry M. Ward Auditorium at Mathews High School was nearly full Sunday for a program about Bill Geroux’s new book, “The Mathews Men: Seven Brothers and the War Against Hitler’s U-Boats.”

This event served a two-fold purpose, both to promote the book which focuses heavily on Mathews County history, and to observe National Maritime Day.

National Maritime Day was created by Congress in 1933 to commemorate the first steamship crossing of the Atlantic by the SS Savannah. Following the end of World War II, the day also began to commemorate the sacrifices made by Merchant Mariners during wartime, sacrifices which often went unnoticed by the public. These sacrifices include a casualty rate higher than any branch of the military other than the Marines, according to the U.S. Maritime Administration.

It was these WWII Merchant Mariners that Bill Geroux discussed at length in his book. Geroux was the main speaker at the event at MHS with others including pastors, des...