TRENTON, N.J. – The Assembly Transportation and Independent Authorities Committee on Thursday released a bill that would name a section of Route 287 after a Korean War veteran.
The section of the interstate at milepost 34.02, known locally as the Harter Road Interchange in Morris Township, is one step closer to being called the Warren E. Wilhide Interchange. Wilhide, who lived in Morris County for more than 50 years, was integral in having Route 287 designated as the Korean War Veterans Memorial Highway back in 1995.
“Mr. Wilhide’s dedication to our country, his fellow veterans, and his service fighting for freedom around the globe is the example of patriotism for all of us to follow,” Assemblyman Christian Barranco (R-Morris), sponsor of the bill (S3005/A5154), said. “No one is more deserving than he of being recognized for his love of country and remembering why we enjoy the freedoms we do.”
He joined the U.S. Army in 1950 and was stationed at the Chunchon air base in South Korea, where he provided supplies to those on the front-line of the war. Back in the states, he served in an anti-aircraft battery defending the White House and the Capitol in Washington, D.C.
After graduating from Johns Hopkins University’s Whiting School of Engineering in 1958, Wilhide, a Maryland native, and his wife Carol eventually settled in Morris County to raise a family and run his consulting business. His volunteer work took him to a post-earthquake Haiti, the Children’s Hospital in Morocco, and Mt. Kilimanjaro in Tanzania to teach children math and science.
He chronicled his time in Korea through photographs, which he donated to Sejong University in Seoul, South Korea. Wilhide was an active member of the Korean War Veterans Association, through which he advocated for designations for distinguished service members along Route 287.
Wilhide passed away on Nov. 19, 2020.
“It’s an honor to do for him what he did for so many exemplary members of our Armed Forces,” Barranco added.