Matthew E Matula

More than a year ago, Matthew E. Matula wrote a letter to his younger brother asking him to "pray for him and pray for what he was about to have to do." His mother, Toni Matula, recounted the letter in April 2003 when the family sent his photo and information him about to the Austin (Texas) American-Statesman for a series called "Our Neighbors at War." "The hardest part of this is not being able to talk to him," she said then. Cpl. Matthew Matula, 20, of Spicewood, Texas, was killed April 9 during a battle in Iraq. He was based at Camp Pendleton, Calif. "The community's completely heartbroken," said friend Brandi Dutton, 23. "He was loved by everybody out here." Dutton said Matula was married and his wife was...