Updated at 11:53 a.m., Thursday, August 23, 2007
Michigan Black Hawk victim leaves behind wife, 2 kids
Advertiser Staff
Family members have identified Matthew Tallman as one of the 14 soldiers killed in yesterday's Black Hawk helicopter crash in Iraq, the Muskegon (Mich.) Chronicle is reporting on its Web site.The newspaper is reporting that Tallman's mother-in-law said she wants people to know he "wasn't just a number."
"I just want him to count," said Vicki Whiting, a resident of Norton Shores, Mich.
Tallman, 30, was the husband of Whiting's daughter Nicci, a 1998 graduate of Mona Shores High School, the paper's Web site reports.
Whiting stressed that the 14 soldiers were individuals whose deaths devastated their friends and families.
In addition to his 27-year-old wife, Tallman leaves behind the couple's 1-year-old son, Ryley, and 6-year-old daughter, Sandie, the paper reports.
"There was a whole little family destroyed," Whiting said. "He wasn't just a number. I want people to know Matthew Tallman existed."
At the time of the accident, Tallman — who was based at Fort Lewis in Washington state — had served just two months in Iraq. Prior to that, he had served a year in Afghanistan, Whiting said.
"He was a good father, good husband and good human being," she said. "He was delighted to have his little princess (Sandie) and his little 'bubba boy.' "
Tallman was a crew chief for the Black Hawk unit and "loved his job, loved being in the air," Whiting said.
