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A stained glass window was recently installed in memory of 2nd Lt. Matthew Blount at the First Baptist Church in Pelham, Ala. Blount was commissioned on March 7 and passed away on March 10 due to leukemia and cancer. According to all who knew him, the Praying Soldier design embodied the spirit of the young officer from his youth through his Army career as a combat medic as well as a member of his family, his church and community. The window was put in place on December 15, 2012 during a small ceremony at the church after which attendees could see the finished product. Photo by Army Sgt. 1st Class Joel Quebec
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PELHAM, Ala. (12/18/2012) – Many youngsters and young soldiers
have visions of heroism, facing an insurmountable foe against
overwhelming odds and surviving as a hero or going down in a blaze
of glory.
For Army 2nd Lt. Matthew Blount, this was never
the case. His motivation for everything he did, in and out of the
Army uniform, was service - to his family, his community and to his
country.
“He was all about self-sacrifice,” said Chief
Warrant Officer 2 Troy Tarazon at
Blount's burial service in Alabama, March 13. “He was not about
himself, ever.” Blount passed away on March 10 of this year after
having fought both leukemia and cancer, less than 72 hours after he
realized his dream of an Army commission.
“When I think of
the traits of a good Soldier, Matt comes to mind as that example,”
said Army Reserve Ambassador and retired Maj. Gen. James W. Darden
who was the guest speaker at the event. “This young man did
everything he did, not for personal gain, but for the protection of
others.” Darden compared Blount to various examples of biblical
heroes to illustrate his desire to serve his fellow man.
On
Dec. 15, at the First Baptist Church of Pelham, a special service
was held for the installation of a stained glass window in memory of
his service as a Boy Scout leader, a combat medic and a pillar of
his church community. The image is that of a praying Soldier, down
on one knee next to a cross with a descending dove above it. Since
Blount was a medic in northern Iraq, a medic's bag sits on the
ground next to the Soldier. There is a shadowed U.S. flag in the
background and an Eagle Scout badge in the bottom corner, also in
shadow.
The idea for the Praying Soldier design came to his
father, retired Command Sgt. Maj. Barry Blount as the “key thing”
that defined his son's spirit. As a 21-year-old in sergeant in 2003,
his son was the senior medic in his unit supervising three others.
“He prayed every night that he did not lose his cool and that
everything he had been taught would work,” his father said. “Because
the life of that soldier, he had to live with.” Blount said his son
worried every night whether or not as a medic he had done the right
things which was why for the greater peace of mind he had chosen to
commission as a military police officer and not as a medical
officer.
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The window itself is much more than colored glass taking
up the space in a wall. “This window represents a life
achievement that was unscripted for our son that embodied
everything that you see here, everything that he believed,”
said Terrie Blount, Matt Blount's mother. “He really wanted
to help people, that was his mindset.” She said he had not
wanted to be an infantry Soldier or anything that might put
him in a position to cause harm to others. “He was an Eagle
Scout, always prepared and he was a believer, a Soldier of
Christ.” Although not represented in the window, Blount was
also a husband and father, a son and a brother. His older
brother was in the Army Reserve and his younger brother is
still on active duty stationed in Germany.
For us,
[the window] is a constant reminder that a short life, well
lived, goes a long way in really having a legacy that other
people can strive toward,” she said. “It's a piece of Matt
that can be a testimony of what he endeavored to be.”
The window is the first of its kind in the church, in
that it doesn't portray a biblical story but the result of
such stories that were embedded in the spirit of a soldier
who lived a life that also exemplified the Army value of
selfless service. Although a headline at the time of his
passing read “An honorable finish,” it is not the end of
Matthew Blount's heroic legacy – a short life, well lived
for the benefit of others.
By Army Sgt. 1st Class Joel Quebec
Provided
through DVIDS
Copyright 2012
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