Scott Oswell dedicated his life to military service from the beginning to the end.

The son of an Air Force officer, Oswell enlisted in the Marine Corps at only 17 years old, joining right after graduating from the Air Academy High School in Colorado Springs. He served valiantly in the corps and the Army for more than a decade before he was killed in action in Iraq in 2007. 

Nearly 15 years after his death, the Colorado legislature is honoring Oswell by naming a portion of Colorado State Highway 115 as the “CW3 Scott A. M. Oswell Memorial Highway.”

“While his life was cut short, his life was one of service,” said Rep. Terri Carver, R-Colorado Springs, who led the effort to name the highway after Oswell. “He served honorably and well and died in service of his country. His life had great purpose and meaning and we are honored to recognize his service.”

The leaders of the state Senate and House signed House Joint Resolution 1015 last week, dedicating the highway after Oswell from Mile Marker 42 to Mile Marker 43. The resolution received unanimous approval from all lawmakers in the legislature.

“It is only fitting that (Oswell’s) bravery and his love of his country and his fellow man should be recognized so that we may never forget his sacrifice to our great nation,” the resolution reads.

Oswell was born in 1973 at the Mountain Home Air Force Base in Idaho. He attended the Air Academy High School after his family moved to Colorado Springs, graduating in 1991.

Oswell served in the Marine Corps for seven years before he was honorably discharged in 1997. Just one year later, he enlisted into the Army and was assigned to Fort Carson. Oswell trained as a helicopter pilot in 2006 and went on to become a chief warrant officer, serving in Hawaii, Washington and Iraq.

On July 4, 2007, Oswell died in a helicopter crash in Mosul, Iraq at 33 years old. He was buried at Fort Logan National Cemetery in Denver.

While voting on the resolution, lawmakers called Oswell “a dedicated military man” and “a true hero serving his country.”

Rep. David Ortiz, who co-sponsored the resolution, survived a similar helicopter crash while serving as an Army pilot in Afghanistan, leaving him paralyzed from the waist down. Ortiz and Oswell flew the same type of helicopter, the OH-58D Kiowa Warrior. Ortiz said the airframe “chooses” its pilots. 

“We were scrappers and we viewed ourselves that way, not to mention that the tradition of the Kiowa is steeped in air cavalry,” Ortiz, D-Centennial, said. “Outside of dying an old man at home surrounded by my friends and family, there is no other way that I would have wanted to go than flying that airframe, serving with my brothers and sisters.” 

During his time in the military, Oswell was honored with the Bronze Star, two Air Medals, three Army Commendation Medals, two Army Achievement Medals, the Navy Achievement Medal, the Army Good Conduct Medal, two Marine Corps Good Conduct Medals, the Iraq Campaign Medal, the Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal and the Global War on Terrorism Service Medal.

Oswell is survived by his wife and three children, as well as his parents and siblings.