The South Dakota Department of Veterans Affairs will be hosting a State Bridge Dedication Ceremony tomorrow (Aug. 18, 2024) to honor U.S. Army Private First Class Gunnar D. Becker.
The ceremony will be at 2pm at the Sanborn County 4-H Building in Forestburg (23237 405th Avenue). The SD34 westbound bridge over the James River, just southeast of Forestburg, will be dedicated as the PFC Gunnar D. Becker Bridge.
Becker was the first casualty of his unit during Operation Iraqi Freedom and the only one lost from Sanborn County since the Vietnam Conflict. He died January 13, 2005, in Mosul when a .50-caliber machine gun round was accidently discharged, ricocheted, and struck him.
Naming bridges in honor of our combat veterans who died while serving their country is an initiative of Governor Kristi Noem and the South Dakota Departments of Military, Transportation, and Veterans Affairs.
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