Chris Dodd: “today I wish to speak in honor of U.S. Army PFC Nicholas Madaras, of Wilton, CT, who was killed in Iraq on September 3…”

“today I wish to speak in honor of U.S. Army PFC Nicholas Madaras, of Wilton, CT, who was killed in Iraq on September 3, 2006. He was 19 years old. Private Madaras, a member of the 1st Battalion, 68th Armor Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, was fatally wounded when a bomb detonated near his dismounted patrol in Baqouba, Iraq. A 2005 graduate of Wilton High School, Nicholas excelled both in the classroom and on the soccer field, where he started for 3 years and served as the team manager. Among the students, teachers, and coaches, he was known as a genuine person, one who led by example and cared about the people around him. Nicholas enlisted in the Army shortly before graduation and arrived in Iraq in February of this year. He was proud to be a soldier and approached his assignment as a driver of a Humvee in a security escort with the same leadership and intensity that he brought to the soccer field. Despite the unimaginable hardships of war, Nicholas never lost his generous spirit. He persuaded his father to mail dozens of used soccer balls to his base because he could not stand to see the local children kicking tin cans. This act of kindness in the midst of cruelty and chaos clearly demonstrated the character of this exemplary young man. PFC Nicholas Madaras was a patriot in the best sense of the word.”