When Army Sgt. James C. Robinson returned to Monroe from his first deployment in Afghanistan, his father, understandably proud, organized a welcome home celebration.

That’s what we Americans do when our heroes come home. We fire up the grill, ice down a few beverages and bake their favorite dessert.

Robinson, 27, a 2001 Monroe High School graduate, was embarrassed by the attention, his father recalled. In fact, he told those at the party: “I’m no hero. I’m doing a job.”

So when Robinson returned from his second deployment, there was no party, no fanfare. Just a few firm handshakes. His father, James R. Robinson, learned his lesson, or so it appeared.

During Robinson’s third deployment, he was killed when insurgents attacked his base in Afghanistan’s Paktikia Province.

Now his father has spearheaded an effort to make sure local residents never forget his son, nor the other 13 Butler County soldiers killed in action.

On Tuesday, State Sen. Bill Coley (R-Liberty Twp.) announced passage of House Bill 325 that will assure some roads in Butler County be named in honor of fallen military members.

It was a fitting tribute to Sgt. James C. Robinson, the ultimate gift from father to son.

“I wasn’t about to let him get the last word,” Robinson, 52, said of his son.

His campaign to get recognition for those he calls “fallen heroes” began in March after a conversation with Fairfield’s John Prazynski, a fellow Gold Star Father whose son, Marine Lance Cpl. Taylor B. Prazynski, 20, was killed in duty in 2005.

Prazynski, who got a portion of Ohio 4 named after his son, introduced Robinson to Coley. Coley said he could get a Butler County highway named after Robinson’s son, a stretch of Ohio 63 between Cincinnati-Dayton Road and Ohio 4 in Middletown.

But Robinson wanted more. This wasn’t just about his son, but the others who had lost their lives.

Robinson, his wife Kim, and his granddaughter watched Tuesday in the Ohio Senate Chambers as House Bill 325 was passed, paving the way for stretches of 14 Butler County highways to be named in honor of the military members.

Robinson said Butler County is being used as a “model” for the state. Eventually, he said, the goal is for all 88 Ohio counties to have highways named after their fallen soldiers.

Robinson’s son worked at a Honda motorcycle shop in Middletown after high school. One day seven years ago, without noticed, he came home and informed his father that he enlisted in the U.S. Army. The military changed Robinson, his father said.

“He became a lot better man, an excellent father. I never thought he had it in him.”

James C. Robinson and his widow, Kate, have two children: Emily, 8, and Tori, who live in Lebanon.