Stretch Of Highway Is Named After Fallen Owasso Soldier

A stretch of U.S. Highway 169 between 86th Street North and 96th Street North in Owasso is now called the "Sergeant Schuyler B Patch Memorial Highway."

Patch was killed in Afghanistan in 2009. On Saturday, friends and family made sure Oklahomans will remember his sacrifice.

The 25-year-old was part of a combat team from Illinois, but he has ties to Owasso.

He lived there for at time with his mother, who still lives there now.

On Saturday, fellow soldiers from his combat brigade made the trip for this special day.

It's a celebration of life.

"Remembering him at times like this carries his memory, makes him feel alive again," said Sgt. Cody Hamilton, a soldier who served with Patch.

Sgt. Schuyler Patch was killed in 2009 when a roadside bomb hit his vehicle in Afghanistan.

Three years later, a portion of U.S. 169 in Owasso is named in his honor.

"Knowing Schuyler, he'd say 'why all the hoopla mom?' He would appreciate it, but he didn't do it for recognition," his mother Colleen Stevens said. "He did it for his country and his family and friends."

Colleen Stevens says life has been a blur since her 25-year-old son died.

"He was my baby before he was ever a soldier." Stevens said. "He was my baby and now he's God's soldier and I want everybody to remember he loved his country. He loved his friends and his family."

At one point during the dedication ceremony, it started sleeting.

Friends say this is Patch's way of saying hello.

"He couldn't make it easy on us. He had to make it a little difficult," Cody Hamilton, a soldier who served with Patch. "We had to work for what we were trying to do. When that started happening, I just knew he was here."

Senator Rick Brinkley is one of the state representatives who authored the bill to name this highway after Patch.

"The very first thing that anyone asked me as a state legislator was 'is there anything you can do to help remember the sacrifice that my son made because I just can't allow him to be forgotten,'" Sen. Rick Brinkley (R-Owasso) said.

Members from the American Veterans Motorcycle Club and American Legion Riders took a christening ride down Highway 169.

Stevens said it's a special honor to have this stretch of road named after her son.

"I was a ball of emotion," Stevens said. "I was proud. I'm still angry. I'm sad all rolled up into one. Things like this bring a little bit of love into this already broken heart of mine."