The Aldan Avenue bridge, located in Falls Township, has been named after a Bucks County native killed during Operation Iraqi Freedom, reports Nikki DeMentri for CBS News Philadelphia.
Private First Class Nate DeTample, a Pennsbury High School graduate, enlisted in the Pennsylvania National Guard when he was a junior in high school.
In 2005, at just 19 years old, he was killed in action.
For his bravery, DeTample has been posthumously awarded the Purple Heart and the Combat Infantryman Badge.
“A bridge connects places. It allows people to move forward to reach new destinations and to stay connected. In many ways, that’s what Nate did in his short life,” said one speaker during the bridge dedication ceremony.
DeTample was an Eagle Scout, a wrestler, and a student studying criminal justice at Shippensburg University. Though he was short in stature, several speakers at the ceremony spoke of his might.
“This bridge will do more than carry traffic. It will carry a legacy,” said Brigadier General Frank J. McGovern IV.
Learn more about Pennsbury graduate Private First Class Nate DeTample and the memorial bridge in his honor at CBS News Philadelphia.
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