Matthew J Sandri

Shamokin, Pennsylvania

March 20, 2004

He was a great guy, and will be sadly missed.

Hello,

Here is some additional information about my son, Sgt. Matthew Sandri, who was KIA 20 Mar 04:

1. Matt had passed his promotion board and was posthumously promoted to sergeant. He had already earned his third stripe and was doing the job, the orders just hadn't gone through.
2. Matt was a combat medic and died as a result of injuries sustained in a rocket attack on the medical facility where he worked, not a living area. (The insurgents were actually targeting the "clinic")
3. He was in Charlie company, 82nd Forward Support Battalion, 3rd Brigade Combat Team of the 82nd Airborne Division.
4. He was at Forward Operations Base Sainte Mere Iglise near Al Fallujah from 9 Aug 03.
5. He previously was deployed to Kandahar Airfield and FOB Camp Salerno (near Khost) Afghanistan from Jul 02 to Jan 03.

I am attaching a photo.
Thank you for this tribute.

Bob Sandri (Matt's dad)

From Bob 11/05/04

Following is an email that we sent out on Matt's birthday, September 1

Hello family and friends,

Today is Matt's Birthday! We wanted to ask you join us in remembering him today as that special person we each knew him to be. He brought us honor by the willingness he showed to do even the utmost for the rest of us. But today we especially want to remember how he could make us smile. When he was very young, he would wave his hands hypnotically in your face like Svengarlic in the Three Stooges and would chant, " I'm going to make you crazy." It was hilarious. He would always lag behind and hide, mainly to entertain himself, but sometimes he would drive us crazy. When he was young, he was quiet and shy, when he got older, some people actually thought he was quiet and shy. Hmmm....


His Mom always came first, there's nothing he wouldn't do for her.....

He was his Dad's little buddy, then #1 son, then dude, brother and hero...soitainly!

We're a big close family and sometimes not everyone gets along, but everyone got along with Matt, no matter what......Svengarlic! Both his grandmothers fussed over him shamelessly.

Matt's sisters and brother meant the world to him.

There's an old saying that goes, "Treat your family like friends and your friends like family."
Matt lived that one to the hilt. It seems like he had a million.....

He loved to surround himself with beautiful women...

One thing we could all learn from Matt was how to relax. Not one to get exited about the "little stuff," he knew how to unwind. He could sleep anytime, anywhere, even on his feet...of course, he preferred the rack......

We all miss him so much. We like to think that he's watching over us and keeping us safe and helping us to avoid doing the wrong thing. Kind of like a guardian angel that got his wings at Fort Benning.....

So, on this day we ask that you raise your glasses high in tribute to our son and brother and remember the goodness and happiness and craziness he brought to each of us. Matt spent his 23rd birthday in Afghanistan and his 24th in Iraq. On this, his 25th, let us celebrate like he would, invite everyone to join you.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, MATT !

CHEERS TO ALL !

SALUTE !

This photo will open into a very large collage.

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"He is definitely the type of paratrooper that we need protecting this countries values and rights. He was more than another Joe on the street. He became a very big part of my family. He is missed greatly."