In a quiet yet touching tribute, Bucks County has dedicated a bridge to honor Air Force Capt. Fred Rost Tice, a local hero who paid the ultimate price during the Vietnam War. Tice, who was 33 at the time of his death, tragically died in a plane crash on September 18, 1965, while attempting to land a C-130A Hercules cargo plane at Qui Nhon Airfield in the midst of a rainstorm. He was among the four casualties of that crash, which cut his tour of duty and his life tragically short just as he was preparing to transition into an instructor role to share his knowledge with fellow airmen.
The gesture to perpetually commemorate Tice came to fruition on Tuesday when County Bridge #241 was officially renamed in his memory. According to the county's announcement, Commissioner Chair Diane Ellis-Marseglia expressed profound respect for Tice's service. "I am in awe that in 1965, when the rest of the country was not supporting what was going on in Vietnam, he found the strength to go over," she said. "Now we are all intertwined with Capt. Tice, and I believe that we will always remember – people who cross the bridge forever – will always remember him."
The bridge named after Tice is located along Orchard Road in Hilltown Township, and crosses Pleasant Spring Creek. Tice himself was a 1961 graduate of Hilltown High School, adding a local significance to the bridge's location. His name joins a growing list of servicemembers honored in this manner – he is the thirteenth Vietnam War solider memorialized by a Bucks County-owned bridge since 2022.
This bridge dedication is a part of the larger provincial gesture, which aims to never forget the sacrifices made by the 136 Bucks County residents lost in the Vietnam War. The Vietnam Veterans Memorial Bridge Program, overseen by Bucks County, works to maintain the memory of these fallen soldiers. In partnership with the county, Ed Preston of the Pennsylvania Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund (PAVVMF) has been a diligent advocate, keenly working to ensure that each lost service member is fittingly honored and that their stories continue to teach and inspire.
