Soldier killed in Afghanistan on Third Tour

Family remembers soldier killed in Afghanistan
TBO.com staff
Published: August 27, 2014

Army Sgt. 1st Class Matthew I. Leggett, 39, died during combat in Kabul on Aug. 20.

DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE Army Sgt. 1st Class Matthew I. Leggett, 39, died during combat in Kabul on Aug. 20.

The family of an Army paratrooper who was killed in action in Afghanistan last week has released a statement.

The Department of Defense said Army Sgt. 1st Class Matthew I. Leggett died during combat in Kabul on Aug. 20. The 39-year-old was assigned to the headquarters battalion of the 18th Airborne Corps.

Leggett enlisted in the Army in May 1995 and had been based at Fort Bragg since 2012. He served three combat tours and was the recipient of numerous awards and decorations, including a Bronze Star Medal with one oak leaf cluster and a Purple Heart for wounds sustained in combat.

His mother, Thea Marie Kurtz, is from Ruskin.
Here is the family's statement:

“LET'S GET IT ON” was Matthew's favorite saying when he was on motorcycle rides with his brother Ben or participating in online racing forums. Matthew (Matt) was born in Wabasha, Minnesota on October 13, 1974 to Thea Kurz, of Port Edwards, Wisconsin and Thomas Leggett of Nekoosa, Wisconsin. He has two brothers, Roderick and Benjamin, as well as two nieces and a nephew. He was raised with his brothers in Pepin, Wisconsin. He spent his early childhood and early teenage summers fishing and paddling around the Mississippi river on various watercrafts.

Matt completed two previous combat tours in Iraq and was on his third combat tour in Afghanistan. He was set to retire from the United States Army in the summer of 2015. read more here