Dedicates a portion of the state highway system to Lt. Col. Matt L. Urban

◆ The sponsor's argument

Why Patrick M. Gallivan says this is needed

Lt. Col. Matt L. Urban was a Polish American World War II Veteran born in Buffalo, New York in 1919. Urban began his Aimy career with the 60th Infantry Regiment, 9th Infantry Division at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, and would end up spending much of the war with his unit, eventually rising to battalion commander. Although severely wounded, he would stay in the theater leading his men in some form until they all went home after the war's end. Urban first saw combat in November 1942 during Operation Torch, the Allied invasion of North Africa. The 60th Infantry landed on the Moroccan coast, fighting the Vichy French. By February of the following year, Urban and the 60th Infantry were fighting the Germans in Tunisia. His unit was hit on all four sides by two enemy battalions. After four hours of fighting, the Americans had held firm. He arrived in France on June 11, 1944, and was facing down Germans three days later. As his company was held up by two incoming enemy tanks, their bazooka gunner went down. Urban called on an ammo carrier to follow him as he picked up the bazooka and took out both. That same day, he was staring down German tanks with a bazooka yet again, this time near Orglandes, but the German fired first. A 37-mm tank gun round tore through his leg, but he refused to leave the field. After a medic attended to his wound, he kept directing the action while being carried on a stretcher. It wasn't until he was wounded again the next day that he was forced to go to a field hospital. Back in England, Urban had taken to training troops who were bound for Normandy so he wouldn't be evacuated to the United States. When a group of them boarded a troop carrier bound for the front, Urban simply hopped on board. He showed up at the 2nd Battalion's command post with a limp and a cane to take command of his old unit. Urban would stay in the Army until after the war was over. He returned home to Michigan, where he spent the rest of his life with his wife and children. He worked as the Director of the civic and recreation depart- ment in Holland. He worked with underprivileged children, volunteered for the Red Cross and helped train boy scouts. Lt. Col. Matt L. Urban passed away on March 4th, 1995 at the age of 75 from a collapsed lung that stemmed from war injuries he sustained during combat. Throughout his military service, he received 29 awards including 7 purple hearts and received the medal of honor from President Jimmy Carter in 1980. During the ceremony the President referred to Matt Urban as the greatest soldier in American history. The only reason Urban didn't receive the Medal of Honor for single-handedly breaking an entire battalion through France while wounded was because the people who were supposed to recom- mend him for the award were killed or captured. But the accounts of everyone who fought with him were "remarkably consistent" even 35 years later: Matt Urban was fearless in the face of the enemy. In honor of his undeniable bravery, heroism and sacrifice for the United States of America, this legislation dedicates a portion of the state highway in the Village of Lancaster, between intersections with Veteran Drive and Traceway. This dedication will serve as a reminder of Lt. Col. Matt L. Urban's lifelong commitment to his community and Country.

This is the sponsor's own case for the bill, quoted from their memorandum. It is not Agora's description of what the bill does.