Substituted for: House Bill No. 2043

By Mike Walker

AN ACT To designate a certain bridge in Blount County as the "Ernest 'Chip' Koella IV Memorial Bridge".

WHEREAS, It is fitting that the General Assembly should pay tribute to those courageous citizens who selflessly sacrificed their lives in an heroic effort to save the life of a fellow human being; and

WHEREAS, Ernest "Chip" Koella IV made a courageous attempt to rescue a person involved in a boating accident, but despite his most valiant efforts, both of them lost their lives; and

WHEREAS, Mr. Koella served with acumen and alacrity as Vice-President of Rockford Manufacturing Company in Rockford, Tennessee; and

WHEREAS, Mr. Koella received his Bachelor of Arts Degree from Emory University in May, 1991, and his Master of Science Degree from North Carolina State University in December, 1993; and

WHEREAS, A highly regarded student, he was awarded the illustrious 1993 Hoechst Celanese Excellence Award for Graduate Studies for the Best Thesis Dissertation at North Carolina State University; and

WHEREAS, Mr. Koella was a member of the Phi Kappa Phi Honor Society, and maintained an exemplary 4.0 Grade Point Average during his collegiate career; and

WHEREAS, Mr. Koella made the ultimate sacrifice of his life in an attempt to preserve the life of one of his fellow human beings; there can be no more noble and unselfish action and his august memory should be appropriately commemorated; now, therefore,

BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF TENNESSEE:

SECTION 1. Notwithstanding any provision of law to the contrary, the bridge that spans the Little River on State Route 33 in Blount County is hereby designated as the "Ernest 'Chip' Koella IV Memorial Bridge" in honor of an all too brief life that was nevertheless bountiful in purpose and commitment.

SECTION 2. The Department of Transportation is directed to erect suitable signs or to affix suitable markers designating such bridge as the "Ernest 'Chip' Koella IV Memorial Bridge".

SECTION 3. The erection of such signs shall be within the guidelines prescribed by the Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices.

SECTION 4. This act shall take effect upon becoming a law, the public welfare requiring it.