World War II ended within days of the United States dropping of Atomic bombs over the cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Japan unconditionally surrendered on September 2, 1945.  Both Goodman and Edson lost sons during the war. George Goodman and Stuart Edson were killed in action in Europe. Edson, having served in the reserve since his service in World War I returned to active duty as a lieutenant colonel and then attained the rank of Colonel shortly before his discharge in 1945.