BEND — U.S. Senators Ron Wyden and Mike Crapo celebrated Wednesday the signing of their bipartisan bill designating U.S. Highway 20 between Newport and New England as the “National Medal of Honor Highway.”

President Joe Biden signed the bill Wednesday. It had previously passed the House and Senate.

“As an Army combat veteran, I am heartened to see this bipartisan support honoring those who have served our country with conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity above and beyond the call of duty,” said Dick Tobiason of Bend, longtime champion of the effort, in a press release. Tobiason served in the U.S. Army for 20 years, including two tours in Vietnam, and retired as a lieutenant colonel. He is chairman of the Bend Heroes Foundation, a nonprofit supporting veterans, and has advocated for years for highways in Oregon and accross the nation to be designated in honor of veterans.

“I’m grateful to my project team of 12 Medal of Honor Highway managers who helped grow this grassroots effort, and to Senator Wyden who helped make our efforts to recognize America’s veteran heroes a reality,” Tobiason said.

The National Medal of Honor is the country’s highest military award for valor, presented by the president in the name of Congress. Service members who distinguish themselves beyond the call of duty through gallantry and courage can receive the medal.

“It’s fitting that our country’s longest continuous highway, stretching from the Pacific to the Atlantic, is now dedicated to our veterans who have continuously served and protected our country from sea to shining sea,” Wyden said in a press release.

Legislators and governors in the 12 states along Highway 20 have designated their state National Medal of Honor Highways, which cover all of the 3,365-mile Medal of Honor Highway across the country.

Senate approves resolution honoring Bend’s Dick Tobiason