Shade 1549 - Service uniform
Chief of Chaplin
WW II & Korean War Veteran

Major General Edwin R. Chess was born in Chicago, Illinois on February 12,1913, Edwin R. Czeslawski AKA Chess was an ordained Roman Catholic priest.

He attended Saint Mary of the Lake Seminary and DePaul University. In 1962, he was given the title of Monsignor by Pope John XXIII. Chess was originally commissioned an officer in the United States Army Reserve in 1942.

He would serve in World War II with the 47th Bombardment Group, the 57th Bombardment Wing and the Twelfth Air Force. He served until the cessation of hostilities in the European Theater of Operations and the inactivation of the Twelfth Air Force.

In 1948, Chess was recalled to active duty as a member of the United States Air Force. During the Korean War, he served with the 67th Tactical Reconnaissance Wing and the Fifth Air Force.

Later in his career, Chess was named Command Chaplain of the U.S. Air Force Security Service before becoming Deputy Chief of Chaplains of the United States Air Force in 1961. He was promoted to Chief of Chaplains and achieved the rank of Major General in 1966. Chess remained Chief of Chaplains until his retirement in 1970.

Awards he received include the Bronze Star Medal, the Air Medal and the Air Force Commendation Medal with two oak leaf clusters.

Chess retired from the military August 1, 1970 and died June 12, 2000 in Brooke Army Medical Center, Texas.