Anthony Matteoni
Sergeant, United States Marine Corps
April 6,1988 – October 1, 2010
Age – 22
Union City, MI
Operation Enduring Freedom
2nd Battalion, 6th Marines, 2nd Marine Division, II Marine Expeditionary Force, Camp Lejeune, NC
Died while supporting combat operations in Helmand province, Afghanistan
Matteoni joined the Marines because he felt compelled to protect his country after witnessing a friend nearly die in the terrorist attack on the World Trade Centers in 2001. Family and friends who knew Tony knew that he was eager for about any adventure. Evidence of this dates to when Tony was only ten years old and rode his bike 10 miles to visit a friend of his mother’s. He was proud of his accomplishment and it was difficult not to scold him for completing such and adventurous mission for a youngster. He wanted to be a leader and worked with continued zeal, even putting himself into his USMC footlocker to phone his Lindsy when phone calls were not authorized.
“We sent him to boot camp a boy and he came back a man,” his wife said. “We are proud of his serving our country.”
Although he had a Marine’s tough exterior, Matteoni was a kind-hearted man who loved his wife, Lindsy, deeply, she said. They were expecting a baby girl in February. “She would have had him wrapped around her little finger,” she said.
Tony was born April 6, 1988 to parents Dennis and Angela Matteoni in Orlando, Florida. His parents met and worked at Disney World; Tony always talked about how amazing his childhood was, “I mean, what kid doesn’t want to grow up at Disney?!”
For his middle school years, the family moved to Union City, Michigan where Tony met some of his dearest friends. During his 9th grade year, Tony and his best friend went to South Haven Beach where he and his now wife Lindsy exchanged email addresses for the first time. He ran track, earned his varsity jacket, and graduated from Union City High School in 2006.
After celebrating, he moved with his family to Orlando, Florida where he worked at Disney World for the summer. Kids always asked him for a signature; dressed in a cowboy outfit with auburn hair and freckles, everyone thought he was Woody from Disney’s “Toy Story.”
He made a quick trip to Michigan in August 2006 when he and Lindsy started dating, and then headed off to boot camp for the United States Marine Corps. Tony completed training for Security Forces and was stationed at Bangor Naval Base in Washington State. The summer of 2008 was a big one. He left the country for the first time to train with the Royal Marines in England, and had way too much fun. Then, on July 19, 2008 he flew to Michigan where he and Lindsy were married and enjoyed spending time with his entire family. In August of 2009 Tony received military orders to Camp Lejeune in North Carolina where he joined the 2nd Battalion 6th Marines and trained for a deployment to Afghanistan. Over the following months, he and his wife lived together and spent every holiday with his family in Florida. On April 2, 2010, he was promoted meritoriously and became Sgt. Anthony Matteoni. In June, the couple found out they are expecting their first child, and the next day Tony was on his way to Afghanistan. Lindsy was able to tell him they would welcome a daughter into the world after her ultrasound on September 30. After a day of excitement and imagining life with a baby girl, Tony died while conducting combat operations in Afghanistan on October 1, 2010