Illinois highway named after fallen soldier

Local highway named in memory of fallen soldier
WPSD
Kendall Downing
Story Created: Tue Oct 16, 2012

FRANKLIN COUNTY, Ill. - For a local family a ten-mile stretch of road now has a special yet somber meaning. Tuesday IDOT crews officially renamed part of Illinois 148 in Franklin County as Army Specialist Travis Picantine Memorial Highway.

Illinois lawmakers approved the proposal back in May.

The Sesser native died in 2009 after returning from Afghanistan and battling Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder.

"If you knew Travis you loved Travis," said Tammie Severs, Travis's mom.

Severs remembers her son not only as a soldier but also a trailblazer.

"From the time he was in junior high, (he said) that he wanted to join the army," she said.

Travis Picantine spent one year on the front lines in Afghanistan. The 23-year-old died on American soil in November of 2009 just as he was getting treatment for PTSD.
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