OMAHA- President Joe Biden signed a bill to rename the Benson post office after an Omaha sailor who saved more than a dozen shipmates while serving in World War II.

The legislation designates the U.S. Postal Service facility at 6223 Maple St. the Petty Officer 1st Class Charles Jackson French Post Office.

French, a Black man who enlisted in the still-segregated Navy as a mess attendant, was hailed as “the hero of the Solomon Islands“ after the sinking of his ship, the USS Gregory, on Sept. 5, 1942, near Guadalcanal. He was credited with swimming for several hours through shark-infested waters while towing a lifeboat filled with 15 wounded shipmates, all of whom were white, until they could be rescued.

Rep. Don Bacon, who introduced the bill to name the Omaha post office, said the designation would help preserve French’s legacy and give “Nebraskans and other Americans the opportunity to remember his heroic actions.”

“Despite the segregation at the time, he went above and beyond to answer the call of duty by saving his fellow sailors,” Bacon said in a statement.

For the full article click HERE