Freedom Remembered

Born: August 28, 1983 in Coffee County, Georgia
Died: August 3, 2005 in Baghdad, Iraq

Spc. Mathew V. Gibbs of Ambrose, Georgia is remembered as a ham who loved to be noticed and for his hugs. He joined the National Guard at age 18 to improve himself and qualify for educational benefits. He worked at a mobile home factory before shipping out. Gibbs was known as “Big Country” and for routinely smoking a “lucky cigar.” He was a big man with an even bigger heart. He loved to joke around, and he could tell a story like no one else. He was a member of Lone Hill United Methodist Church. He leaves his wife, Reagan, two daughters, Ariana Gibbs and Arissa Gibbs, his mother, Jenny Lynn Meeks Thompson, father, Paul Vincent Gibbs, two daughters, Ariana Gibbs and Arissa Gibbs, his brother, Derek and a sister, Sarah Fussell. He was killed at age 21 when a vehicle-borne improvised explosive device detonated near the armored personnel carrier in which he was riding in Baghdad. Also killed were Spc. Jerry L. Ganey Jr. and Sgt. 1st Class Charles H. Warren.
Army
National Guard
648th Engineer Battalion
48th Infantry Brigade
Statesboro, Georgia

Burial is at Lone Hill Cemetery in Coffee County, Georgia

The Spc Mathew Vincent Gibbs by Freedom Remembered, unless otherwise expressly stated, is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial 3.0 United States License.