[Congressional Record Volume 163, Number 144 (Thursday, September 7, 2017)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1181]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




RECOGNIZING THE LIFE OF FALLEN MISSISSIPPI ARMY NATIONAL GUARD SOLDIER 
              FIRST LIEUTENANT (1LT) MATTHEW RYAN STOVALL

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                            HON. TRENT KELLY

                             of mississippi

                    in the house of representatives

                      Thursday, September 7, 2017

  Mr. KELLY of Mississippi. Mr. Speaker, today I rise in memory of 
Mississippi Army National Guard soldier First Lieutenant (1LT) Matthew 
Ryan Stovall who paid the ultimate sacrifice while defending our great 
nation on August 22, 2004, during Operation Iraqi Freedom. According to 
the Associated Press, 1LT Stovall was killed when an improvised 
explosive device detonated near the vehicle he was riding in. At the 
time of his death, 1LT Stovall was taking part in a humanitarian aid 
and convoy mission in Mosul, Iraq. 1LT Stovall was assigned to the 
367th Maintenance Company, 298th Corps Support Battalion, Mississippi 
Army National Guard, Philadelphia, Mississippi.
  1LT Stovall joined the Mississippi Army National Guard prior to his 
1997 graduation from Neshoba Central High School. He completed Officer 
Candidate School in 2001 and later completed the Officer Basic Course 
in Fort Eustis, Virginia in 2002. That same year, 1LT Stovall married 
his wife, Natalie. Together they had one son, Walker Stovall.
  In September 2003, 1LT Stovall deployed to Mosul, Iraq. While in 
Mosul, he was chosen to lead the 1st Platoon of the 401st 
Transportation Company, known as the ``A Team.'' During his deployment, 
1LT Stovall stayed in contact with his cousin, Robin McClellan, a 
teacher at Philadelphia Elementary School. He regularly communicated 
through e-mails with the students in her fifth grade class. The 
students would get excited every time his e-mails were read aloud to 
them.
  Two months before 1LT Stovall was to return home from Iraq, he was 
fatally wounded. According to the Associated Press, approximately 500 
people attended the memorial service held at McClain-Hayes Funeral 
Home. Mississippi National Guard Major General (MG) Harold Cross 
presented 1LT Stovall's family with awards including the Purple Heart 
and the Mississippi Magnolia Cross for Meritorious Service. ``He made 
people want to follow him,'' MG Cross said ``He is the kind of person 
that doesn't come along for generations.'' Hundreds of Neshoba County 
residents lined the nine mile route from the funeral home to the 
Coldwater Baptist Church cemetery where he was laid to rest. He was 
buried with full military honors.
  In August 2004, 1LT Stovall's aunt, JoAnn Carney, wrote about her 
nephew in a post on Iraqwarheroes.com. ``I loved him so very much,'' 
Mrs. Carney said. ``My nephew was a remarkable man that touched 
everyone he met. We are going to miss him so very much.''
  Following the death of 1LT Stovall, Stovall's Sacrifice for Soldiers 
was founded. The Stovall Foundation offers financial assistance to 
military men and women defending our nation and to carry on the memory 
of 1LT Stovall.
  1LT Stovall is survived by his son, Walker; his parents, Buck and 
Ellon Stovall; his sister, Marsha Stovall Vance; and his brother, Mark 
Stovall.
  This young, courageous soldier paid the ultimate sacrifice to protect 
the freedoms we all enjoy. 1LT Stovall will not be forgotten.

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