Matt Spartz couldn’t attend his grandfather’s funeral in person, but Lombard soldier serving in Afghanistan found a way to pay his respects
By 1st Lt. Matt Spartz
Editor’s note: Army Lt. Matt Spartz, a lifelong Lombard resident, was deployed to Afghanistan in May with the 101st Airborne Division. A 2008 journalism graduate of University of Illinois, he is submitting occasional reports for the Daily Herald.
When I was a boy, I loved watching my grandpa, John Spartz, lead his VFW post during the Memorial Day parade in …

Editor’s note: Lt. Matthew Spartz, a lifelong Lombard resident, has been writing columns for the Daily Herald since his deployment to Afghanistan. Last week, he was wounded in a battle that claimed the lives of six American troops. He shares the details of that fight in the Pech Valley.
I faced my greatest fear in the sky-scraping mountains of the Pech Valley’s Taliban training havens, and now that fear no longer scares me.
My greatest fear was not death. I’ve been incrementally inoculated from the …

By Lt. Matt Spartz | Guest Columnist
Published: 8/25/2010 12:02 AM
Editor’s Note: Army Lt. Matt Spartz, a lifelong Lombard resident, was deployed to Afghanistan in May with the 101st Airborne Division. A 2008 journalism graduate of University of Illinois, he is submitting occasional reports for the Daily Herald.
Life on a combat outpost is a modern day Sparta. Far from the “flagpole,” or larger bases with high ranking officers, daily life revolves around one maxim – training for battle.
Without delving too deep into the existential, the …

By 1st Lt. Matt Spartz | Special to the Daily Herald
Published: 8/10/2010 12:00 AM
Editor’s Note: Army Lt. Matt Spartz, a lifelong Lombard resident, was deployed to Afghanistan in May with the 101st Airborne Division. A 2008 journalism graduate of University of Illinois, he is submitting occasional reports for the Daily Herald.
On a recent “Meet the Press,” host David Gregory seemed to try and pigeonhole Adm. Mike Mullen on the real objectives of the war in Afghanistan. Sparked by the recent striking picture on the cover …

By 1st Lt. Matt Spartz | Speical to the Daily Herald
Editor’s Note: Army Lt. Matt Spartz, a lifelong Lombard resident, is a 2008 journalism graduate of University of Illinois. He recently was deployed to Afghanistan with the 101st Airborne Division. From there, he will be submitting occasional reports for the Daily Herald.
The Army is a culture of validation. We walk around with our resumes on our chest: rank, airborne and marksmanship badges, even the perception of prestigious versus bland unit patches. But possibly the No. 1 validation of a modern …

 Lombard soldier’s intro to war: 10% violence, 90% excruciating boredom
 
Editor’s Note: Army Lt. Matt Spartz, a lifelong Lombard resident, is a 2008 journalism graduate at University of Illinois. He recently was deployed to Afghanistan with the 101st Airborne Division. From there, he will be submitting occasional reports for the Daily Herald.
When the suicide bomber and squad of reported Taliban dressed in U.S. Army uniforms used grenades to breach the gate at Bagram Air Field, Afghanistan, the morning of May 19, my eyes shot open. I pulled one ear out behind …