The Stoney Trail bridge over the Bow River was named in honour after Cpl. Nathan Hornburg Sunday. Hornburg was a soldier of the King’s Own Calgary Regiment who was killed in action in Afghanistan in 2007 while helping to rescue a disabled tank. Sunday, Col. Chris Hunt, the Senior serving member of the King’s Own Calgary Regiment, said naming a bridge over a Calgary river after Hornburg reflected the regiment’s deep connection to the city. “Corporal Nathan Hornburg was the last King’s Own soldier to be killed in action, and it is fitting that this impressive bridge was named after him,” Hunt said. “He represented the professionalism of the regiment’s soldiers, the sacrifices of all who came before him, and the regiment’s deep connection to Calgary. “While the Corporal Nathan Hornburg Memorial Bridge spans the Bow River, the Patterson Bridge, dedicated to Private John George Patterson, who earned the Victoria Cross at Vimy Ridge, spans the Elbow River just south of downtown. “These bridges over Calgary’s two rivers, named after two of the regiment’s great soldiers, reflect the deep connections between the regiment and the citizens of Calgary,” Hunt added. Nathan’s friend Cpl Mark Fuchko, who served two tours in Afghanistan, remembered Hornburg for his positivity and reliability. “Nathan was a soldier who would always help you out, always had a good joke, always had a goofy quip about something, and the fact that he didn’t want to let his fellow soldiers down, and when he was killed, he was going to the aid of other soldiers,” Fuchko said. “Nathan was a really good dude,” Fuchko added. “He had his whole life ahead of him, and he chose to serve. “Every day, I’m reminded quite regularly of Nathan because I have to cross this bridge almost daily, and there’s not a day that goes by that I don’t think about him. And I know those who knew him also feel the same way.” With files from CTV’s Darren Wright
