Florence council supports renaming bridge after late Mesa Boy Scout

The Florence Town Council has joined the Pinal County Board of Supervisors in supporting the renaming of the Gila River Bridge through the town after a young Mesa boy who was killed in an accident there more than 50 years ago.

On Monday, the council unanimously agreed to sign and forward a letter to the Arizona State Board on Geographic and Historic Names to rename the bridge the “Rusty Greer Memorial Bridge.” The board of supervisors approved the renaming effort during its July 3 meeting.

Russell “Rusty” John Greer of Mesa was just 12 when he was struck and killed by a car on April 1, 1972, while he and his fellow Boy Scout troop members rode their bikes across the bridge over the Gila River on State Route 79 on the north side of Florence.

Chairman of the Board of Supervisors Mike Goodman was among the group of Boy Scouts when the fatal accident occurred. He appeared before the council to ask for its support during Monday’s meeting.

“I’m asking that you do this mainly as a personal favor. I was a part of the group of boys that was on this scouting activity. There were 14 of us. We started at Ellsworth Road, and we worked our way through. This was the last part of our 50-mile bike ride to be able to get our biking merit badge,” Goodman said. “ As we crossed the bridge, the Gila River Bridge, a tragic accident occurred where a good friend of mine was struck by a car.”

During the board of supervisors meeting, Goodman recounted that as the group rode over the bridge, one of his friends gestured to warn Greer about oncoming traffic. Greer thought his friend was motioning for him to come over and was struck by a vehicle.

Renaming the bridge has been a long-time effort by Rusty Greer’s younger brother, Doug Greer of Queen Creek, who was 2 when the accident occurred. Earlier this year, he submitted the paperwork to have the name of the bridge changed to that of his brother’s.

Rusty Greer’s younger sister, Kristi Whetten of Queen Creek, is married to Dr. Jason Whetten, who owns Florence Family Dentistry in Florence.

“It would mean a lot to the Greer family and to the many young men that were there that day,” Goodman said. “The Greer family have been members of this community for a lot of years, they’ve been in Pinal County for a lot of years.”

Councilmember Jose Maldonado said he is involved with the local American Legion’s work with the Boy Scouts. He said he would make an effort to have local scout members on hand if and when the bridge is rededicated.

Goodman said he and others supporting the name change will be going before the Arizona State Board on Geographic and Historic Names to make their case on July 23.

We’d like to invite our readers to submit their civil comments, pro or con, on this issue. Email AZOpinions@iniusa.org. Janet Perez can be reached at jperez@iniusa.org.