Special Mention

On the previous pages, twelve noteworthy individuals who were born in WNY were mentioned. A special mention, we believe, is appropriate for Matt Louis Urban.

According to Wikipedia, Matt Urban was born, "Matty Louis Urbanowitz", the son of Stanley and Helen Urbanowitz, in Buffalo, New York. He was baptized at Corpus Christi Church and attended Buffalo East High School. His father was a plumbing contractor of Polish heritage.

Lieutenant Colonel Urban (called "the Ghost") was a United States Army infantry officer who served in the African and European Theater of Operations in World War II. He served as a platoon, company, and battalion commander of General Eddy's Ninth Infantry Division which was awarded twenty-four Distinguished Unit Citations for World War II. He scouted, led charges and performed in combat doing great deeds of courage oftentimes while seriously wounded. He was awarded more than a dozen combat decorations by the Army in addition to seven purple hearts. In 1980, he was awarded and presented the Medal of Honor and four other combat decorations belatedly for repeated acts of heroism in combat in France and Belgium in 1944. In presenting the Medal of Honor to Urban, President Jimmy Carter said, "Matt Urban is the greatest soldier in American history.”