Army Spc. Micheal B. Matlock, Jr., 21, of Glen Burnie, Md. died Feb. 20 in Baghdad, Iraq, from wounds suffered when his vehicle encountered an improvised explosive device in Baghdad on Feb. 19. He was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 502nd Infantry Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault), Fort Campbell, Ky. Killed along with Spc. Matlock were: Sgt. Conrad Alvarez, 22, of Big Spring, Texas, and Cpl. Albert Bitton, 20, of Chicago.
HE WAS A HAPPY AND RESPONSIBLE MAN
A Glen Burnie soldier was one of three men killed in Iraq this week after their vehicle hit a roadside bomb, the Pentagon said Friday.
Spc. Micheal B. Matlock Jr., 21, an infantryman with the 101st Airborne Division, died Wednesday from wounds suffered when their vehicle hit an improvised explosive device in Baghdad, where the soldiers were responsible for security.
Matlock was raised by his mother, Sheena Douglas, and his stepfather, Ronald Douglas, in Glen Burnie. His biological father, Micheal Matlock Sr., lives in North Carolina.
A year ago, Matlock married Breon Summers, his high-school sweetheart. The couple have one child, Byron, 1. Family members reached Friday night declined to comment.
Neighbors in the Cohansey Court townhouse community where Matlock grew up described him as a happy and responsible child, who often helped his stepfather with landscaping jobs he did on the side for elderly neighbors. Matlock also loved to play basketball.
"My heart goes out to Ron," said Kelly Gross, who is close to Matlock's stepfather. "He loved that boy, he loved him. Words cannot say the devastation, the devastation."
Gross last saw Matlock about two weeks ago, when he came home for a visit. Matlock, he said, was in good spirits, and planning for his future: he even bought a gray Ford Explorer.
"It's not fair, it's really not fair," Gross said. "I'll be so glad when this war in Iraq is over."
Saturday, February 23, 2008
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