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As the military police (MP) officer in charge of Checkpoint Charlie in West Berlin during the early 1960s, U.S. Army Capt. Roy Isaacson served at one of the most sensitive and strategic locations of the Cold War.
After World War II, the Allies divided Germany, with the Soviet Union controlling East Germany while Great Britain, France and the United States controlled West Germany. The German capital of Berlin was also divided between east and west. On Aug. 13, 1961, the East German government began building a wall through and around East Berlin in an effort to stop its citizens from escaping to the west. At the Berlin Wall, Checkpoint C, better known as Checkpoint Charlie, served as one of the few official crossing points.
Isaacson arrived in Germany as the wall was being completed. His pregnant wife, Brenda, joined him in December 1961 so that Isaacson would be present at their baby’s birth. Brenda flew to Germany on a tourist visa; at the time, the Army did not allow families to accompany soldiers to West Germany. She recalled Isaacson often telling her, “Wherever you go, I want to go, and wherever I go, I want you to come behind me.”
While serving at Checkpoint Charlie, Isaacson witnessed the tragedy, perseverance and ingenuity of people desperate to escape East Germany. He saw East Berliners swim across the Spree River under fire to reach freedom, as well as West Berliners who took heroic measures to smuggle their loved ones out of the eastern sector — including one case in which someone hid under the back seat of a car.
Divided Berlin also affected the Isaacsons’ family life. Brenda recalled American tanks passing their home every morning shortly after 4 a.m.; she and her husband would place a chair next to a window so their son could watch them roll by. She also remembered watching President John F. Kennedy’s televised funeral service at Arlington National Cemetery in November 1963 — but the service aired for only 90 minutes before the satellite signal faded, and viewers had to wait for the satellite to orbit over Germany again to continue watching.
On May 13, 2026, Isaacson was laid to rest in Section 62 of Arlington National Cemetery. In her eulogy, U.S. Army Chaplain (Capt.) Sharon Demoret stated that Isaacson “stood on the front lines of history.” Brenda and the couple’s two sons attended the service: Philip Isaacson, who was born in Germany and served six years in the Army, and Lt. Gen. David Isaacson, who serves as the director for Command, Control, Communications and Computers/Cyber, Chief Information Officer, J-6, Joint Staff.
As Brenda watched the honor guard fold an American flag over her husband’s casket, she kissed Isaacson’s wedding ring, which she wears on a necklace. “He had given us a wonderful life,” she later said. “He was absolutely a wonderful father and a good husband.”
In addition to his service in Germany, Isaacson served in Vietnam and at the Pentagon. Retiring as a colonel, he decided he would eventually like to be buried at Arlington National Cemetery.
“When you’re patriotic, you cannot help but think of Arlington,” Brenda said. She added, “And of course, my sweet husband always said, ‘wherever you go, I want to go, and wherever I go, I want you to come behind me.’”
| Date Taken: | 06.15.2026 |
| Date Posted: | 06.15.2026 15:48 |
| Story ID: | 567843 |
| Location: | ARLINGTON, VIRGINIA, US |
| Web Views: | 21 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, On the Front Lines of History: Soldier Served at Checkpoint Charlie During Height of the Cold War, by Kevin Hymel, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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