Bridge’s ceremonial name honors Purple Heart vets
FORT CLINTON, N.Y. >> It’s the oldest of the New York State Bridge Authority’s five crossings and arguably the most scenic. Now it has a special place in the hearts of veterans and the people who support them.
During a ceremony Monday, the day after Veterans Day, a sign bearing the name the “Purple Heart Veterans Memorial Bear Mountain Bridge” was unveiled at the Hudson River span
that connects the northern tips of Rockland and Westchester counties. It was to be placed on the eastbound
side of the bridge.
Bridge Authority Executive Director Joseph Ruggiero called it a fitting tribute and a reflection of values.
“As the heirs to our nation’s history and values, it is our duty to head George Washington’s vision that the merit of service for all those who served us shall be recognized and memorialized in perpetuity,” Ruggiero said. “I cannot think of a more fitting tribute that designating this grand structure the Purple Heart Veterans Memorial Bridge.”
The renaming was the result of a a bipartisan push from retiring Republican state. Sen. William Larkin, a veteran of World War II and the Korean War, and Democratic Assemblywoman Sandra Galef.
Larkin was unable to attend Monday’s ceremony. Galef, who did attend, said she was confident Larkin shares the vision that, henceforth, the bridge will stand as an essential symbol.
“They will be reminded of the people that have served us and are serving us today and will serve us in
the future and are there to give us the democracy and the freedoms that we have in this country,” Galef said.
The Bear Mountain Bridge is the fourth Bridge Authority span to be ceremonially renamed: The Kingston-Rhinecliff Bridge honors former New York Gov. George Clinton; the Mid-Hudson Bridge bears the name of former President Franklin D. Roosevelt; and the NewbrughBeacon Bridge honors Hamilton Fish — a New York congressman, senator and governor in the 19th century — and multiple generations of his descendants.
The authority’s fifth bridge is the Rip Van Winkle, connecting Greene and Columbia counties.