ALPHA, Illinois — The post office in Alpha, Illinois has been renamed to honor the service and sacrifice of Captain Joshua E. Steele.
The renaming ceremony took place Thursday morning, August 29, outside the post office. Going forward the post office will hold the name “Captain Joshua E. Steele Post Office.”
Captain Steele died in Afghanistan back in January of 2007. He was awarded a Bronze Star and a Purple Heart.
“I’ll never forget Josh,” said his brother, Stephen Steele. “I have very fond memories of him but this will also insure that members of this community will get to understand the sacrifice he made.”
Dozens of community members and Congresswoman Cheri Bustos attended the ceremony.
Previous reports indicated Captain Steele passed away when the Humvee he was in detonated an improvised explosive device. His memory has been honored with a memorial in Aledo that was constructed in 2015.
