David Anthony Wilkey Jr.

ESCANABA — Several Upper Peninsula lawmakers are seeking to rename a stretch of U.S. 41 in Menominee County to honor a soldier killed in Iraq in 2007: Spc. David Anthony Wilkey Jr., who was raised in Wilson and still has family in the area.

Michigan House Bill No. 4351, introduced in April by state Rep. Dave Prestin with the support of Reps. Karl Bohnak and Greg Markkanen, would designate a span of roadway as “SPC David Anthony Wilkey Jr. Memorial Highway” — and is well on its way, with recent passage by the Michigan House. However, the bill must still go through the Michigan Senate.

Wilkey was born in Norway in 1984 and grew up in Wilson before moving to Elkhart, Ind. In December 2005, he married the former Melinda Clark, and in January 2006, he entered the U.S. Army. At Fort Riley, Kan., he was assigned to Company C, 1st Battalion, 28th Infantry Regiment; on Feb. 18, 2007, he joined the Multi-National Corps in Iraq, according to his obituary.

Wilkey died June 18, 2007, at age 22 from wounds suffered the previous day when a roadside bomb blew up near his unit in Baghdad, the Pentagon said at the time. His widow was left with two children and a third on the way.

After his death, Wilkey was awarded the Bronze Star and the Purple Heart in recognition of his bravery and sacrifice.

After second and third readings of Prestin’s bill to the Michigan House of Representatives this month, representatives voted unanimously — 101 yeas, 0 nos, nine not voting — to designate the Upper Peninsula highway span as “SPC David Anthony Wilkey Jr. Memorial Highway.”

The bill would technically be amending Public Act 142 of 2001, the Michigan Memorial Highway Act, by adding another section.

The 7-1/2-mile portion of highway in question reaches from U.S. 41’s intersection with U.S. 2 between Powers and Spalding to where it meets County Road 372 in Carney.

“This legislation is more than a simple highway naming. For our U.P. community, it is a profound act of gratitude for a young man who gave everything for our state and our nation,” Prestin said. “Specialist David Anthony Wilkey Jr. was a true Yooper through and through – he cherished hunting, fishing and the natural beauty of our region. This honor would mean the world to his family and his community. It would transform a familiar road into a lasting reminder of David’s selflessness, reminding travelers on U.S. 41 to reflect on the high cost of freedom.”

Establishing signage to mark the new designation will not use taxpayer or governmental dollars but private donations. The Michigan Memorial Highway Act states that “the state transportation department shall only provide for the erection and maintenance of suitable markers at the approach of any of the highways described in this act when sufficient private contributions are received to pay the cost of erecting and maintaining those markers.”