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Marine Lance Cpl. Matthias N. Hanson
Died February 21, 2010 Serving During Operation Enduring Freedom
20, of Buffalo, Ky.; assigned to the 3rd Battalion, 6th Marine Regiment, 2nd Marine Division, II Marine Expeditionary Force, Camp Lejeune, N.C.; died Feb. 21 while supporting combat operations in Helmand province, Afghanistan.
Kentucky Marine killed in Afghanistan
The Associated Press
CAMP LEJEUNE, N.C. — Military officials say a North Carolina-based Marine has died while fighting in southern Afghanistan.
The Department of Defense said on Tuesday that 20-year-old Lance Cpl. Matthias N. Hanson of Buffalo, Ky., died Sunday in Helmand province, Afghanistan, site of a major offensive by U.S. and Afghan forces against the Taliban.
Buffalo is a community south of Hodgenville in LaRue County, Ky., 45 miles south of Louisville.
Other details were not immediately available
Hanson was a rifleman assigned to the 3rd Battalion, 6th Marine Regiment, 2nd Marine Division at Camp Lejeune. He joined the Marine Corps in June 2008.
The News-Enterprise of Elizabethtown, Ky., reported Tuesday that Hanson, who played football for LaRue County High School, is survived by two brothers who also serve in the military.
Hanson is also survived by his parents, step-parents and three sisters.
“During his time at LaRue County High School, Matt spoke often of his desire to join the Marines,” said Paul Mullins, the school’s principal.
Fallen Marine was a ‘big kid,’ loved ones say
The Associated Press
HODGENVILLE, Ky. — A Marine killed in Afghanistan was “a big kid” who, family and friend say, had the ability to make others feel safe around him.
The Rev. Norm Brock recalled Marine Lance Cpl. Matthias Hanson’s personality and commitment to service during the soldier’s Feb. 27 funeral at LaRue County High School’s gymnasium.
Hanson, 20, died Feb. 21 while serving with Kilo Company, 3rd Battalion, 6th Marines, 2nd Battalion Infantry.
Friends remembered Hanson, a 2008 graduate of LaRue County High School, as a football player, member of the Student Technology Association and someone with a sneaky grin that always seemed on the edge of laughter.