HR1312 93RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HR1312 LRB093 24276 CSA 54547 r

HOUSE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, U.S. Marine Corporal Matthew Wyatt of Millstadt died December 3, 2004 while serving his country; he was killed when a car bomb exploded while he was patrolling Trebil, a town on the Iraq-Jordan border; he was awarded the Purple Heart; and

WHEREAS, Matthew's death marks the first military casualty for Millstadt since World War II; and

WHEREAS, He is the son of Verlene and U.S. Marine Gunnery Sergeant Alan Wyatt; and

WHEREAS, He was born and raised in Millstadt, and was a 1997 graduate of Millstadt Consolidated School and a 2001 graduate of Belleville West High School where he was a defensive back on the football team; he was known as an outgoing and hard-working young man; and

WHEREAS, After graduating from high school, he enlisted in the Marine Corps for a five-year term that would have ended in 2006; since August 2002, he had been based at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina; he left for his first tour of duty in Iraq on September 14, 2004; and

WHEREAS, He will be remembered as a small-town boy with big ideas; as a boy, Matthew wanted one thing in life more than anything else - to become a Hollywood movie star; later, his dream was to play college football for the University of Michigan - then it was to become a Marine; a movie aficionado, he was the funnyman at family gatherings; every time the family got together, he would round up his cousins and perform skits; he also took part in all the church and school plays; he wanted to move to California to be an actor, but he knew Millstadt was home; and

WHEREAS, His bravery in combat and willingness to serve his country will never be forgotten by a grateful State and nation; it is because of true heroes like Matthew that each U.S. citizen has the freedoms they enjoy; and

WHEREAS, He is survived by his parents; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE NINETY-THIRD GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that together with his family, friends, fellow members of the United States armed forces, and the citizens of this State and this great nation, we mourn the passing of U.S. Marine Corporal Matthew Wyatt and we extend to his family our sincerest condolences; and be it further

RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be presented to his family as an expression of our deepest sympathy.