Army Sgt. Matthew L. Tallman

Remember Our Heroes

Army Sgt. Matthew L. Tallman, 30, of Groveland, Calif.

Sgt. Tallman was assigned to the 4th Squadron, 6th U.S. Air Cavalry Regiment, Fort Lewis, Wash.; died Aug. 22, 2007 in Multaka, Iraq, of injuries suffered when his helicopter crashed. Also killed were Capt. Corry P. Tyler, Chief Warrant Officer 2 Paul J. Flynn, Spc. Rickey L. Bell, Capt. Derek A. Dobogai, Staff Sgt. Jason L. Paton, Sgt. Garrett I. McLead, Cpl. Jeremy P. Bouffard, Cpl. Phillip J. Brodnick, Cpl. Joshua S. Harmon, Cpl. Nathan C. Hubbard, Spc. Michael A. Hook, Spc. Jessy G. Pollard and Spc. Tyler R. Seideman.

Tallman’s mother-in-law, Vicki Whiting of Norton Shores, Mich., told the Muskegon (Mich.) Chronicle that her daughter Nicci met and married him in 2000 while both were in the Army at Fort Eustis, Va. The couple have a year-old son, Ryley, and a daughter, Sandie, 6, at Fort Lewis.

“He was a good father, good husband and good human being,” Whiting told the paper. “He was delighted to have his little princess and his little ‘bubba boy.’”

“There was a whole little family destroyed. He wasn’t just a number. I want people to know Matthew Tallman existed,” she said.

Fort Lewis officials said Tallman was posthumously promoted to sergeant. He joined the Army in 2000 and was stationed at Fort Polk, La., and Wheeler Army Airfield in Hawaii before he was assigned to Fort Lewis in 2005.

Whiting said Tallman was deployed previously to Afghanistan.

Army Sgt. Matthew L. Tallman was killed in action on 8/22/07.