Jerry ‘Dale’ Cox III memorial bridge bill passes legislature
HARTFORD – A portion of Greenwoods Road will be forever remembered for a high school student that will live forever in the hearts and minds of those he left behind.
On Wednesday, the state House of Representatives passed a bill that will rename the section of the Torrington road, crossing over Route 8, as the “Jerry Dale Cox III Memorial Bridge” – in memoriam of a 16-year-old Winsted resident who lost his life in a tragic accident in December 2010. State Rep. Jay Case, R-63, introduced the bill at the beginning of the legislative session and brought the departed teen’s mother to the State Capitol during the bill’s hearing process.
“I’m speechless,” Rep. Case, a member of the Appropriations, Energy, Environment and Human Services committees, said on Wednesday. “Dale was one of those kids that will forever be near and dear to his friends, classmates, teachers, and his family. While they are figuring out how to live life without him, they can look at this bridge naming as a nod to the type of person he was. We’ll never be able to get Dale back, but we’ll be able to remember him and the joyful life he lived because of this minimal acknowledgement.”
“My son Dale, as we called him, was a wonderful young man,” Carol Cox, Dale’s mother said on March 8 during a committee hearing. “He made quite the impression on his friends, family. The community has really come together to help me immensely with cherishing Dale’s honor and his memory with the scholarship.
“Many people see that bridge and remember the accident, remember my son and his name. I’d like them to say, ‘I want to be like him,’” she added then.
The bill, S.B. 975, a large transportation-related measure, will now head to Gov. Dannel P. Malloy’s desk, where he is expected to sign it and it will take effect immediately.
“It’s the least this state could do,” Rep. Case added. “The naming of this bridge is a fitting tribute to the mark Dale had on his loved ones and countless friends as well as our community.”