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War Brings End To Their Love Story

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By GEOFF FOX

The Tampa Tribune

Published: May 1, 2008

ZEPHYRHILLS - If it wasn't love at first sight when Julia Ehrman laid eyes on Marcus Mathes, there probably is no such thing.

She was a high school sophomore taking night classes at Zephyrhills High School, where he was a junior. Two weeks after she graduated in 2002, the high school sweethearts married.

"Oh my God," she said. "I know people talk about love at first sight all the time, but I was just staring at him. He would catch me looking, and I'd do that look-away thing. It was just, like, attraction right there, but it was a strong, strong attraction."

An equipment driver with the Army, 26-year-old Marcus Mathes was one of three U.S. soldiers killed by mortar fire in eastern Baghdad Monday. Another U.S. soldier was killed in western Baghdad the same day.

Since receiving the news, Julia Mathes, 24, has been busy talking with Army officials about the return of his body, planning for a possible trip to a memorial service at Fort Polk, La., where Mathes had been stationed, and answering one phone call after another.

Mathes is eager to talk about her husband, but it's not easy.

"He was so sweet," she said, her voice rising with emotion. "We talked not long ago about how we decided his gift from God was making other people happy. Even if he was upset or something, he made sure everyone else was OK. That was his gift.

"He could take charge when he needed to, and he was very serious about the role he played. He was really excited about being a sergeant and... ," she said, her voice trailing off.

Mathes was so close to becoming a sergeant that he was posthumously promoted, his wife said. He enlisted after the Sept. 11 attacks and served in Afghanistan before deploying to Iraq in November.

Mathes died alongside his best friend, Mark Stone of Texas.

"They were standing out by their trucks, getting prepared for another mission," said his father, Ralph Mathes of Tampa. "One mortar landed right between them, killed them both instantly. His commanding officer called and explained that everything went very quickly."

Funeral arrangements are incomplete, but Mathes will be buried at Florida National Cemetery in Bushnell, probably next week, his family said. Survivors include his mother and stepfather, Sue and Mike Sawyer of Sebring; stepmother Joyce Mathes; and brothers Kyle Mathes of Illinois and Zach Sawyer of Sebring.

Mathes' brother-in-law, Bryan Harvey, was in a nearby truck when Mathes' truck was hit, but Harvey was not injured. The two worked in the same division and squad.

"He's not doing so well," Julia Mathes said of Harvey. "He was three trucks away when they heard the boom. He and another guy were in a truck, and Bryan said, 'Close the door. Close the door tight.'

"As soon as they closed it, a bunch of scrap metal went flying all across the door. If they hadn't closed it, they could have been killed, too."

Harvey later found Mathes' Bible near his body.

Wednesday, rather than thinking about how he died, Mathes' family preferred to remember his smile, sense of humor and love of the beach.

"He was always teasing back and forth with his dad," Joyce Mathes said. "The first time I saw that, I took Marcus' side, and we clicked forevermore after that. We were kind of confidants. If he ever wanted to vent or had something he couldn't say to the others, I just became that person for him."

She said she and her husband took Marcus and Julia on a cruise to Puerto Rico in October, just before Mathes deployed to Iraq.

"Marcus was always fun," Joyce Mathes said. "We'd hike to waterfalls and go scuba diving, and he loved it - anything to do with nature and being outside. I know he died a soldier and doing exactly what he wanted to do. That was Marcus, but it didn't totally define him.

"It was that fun-loving, big smile and just having a good time. I'll miss him as a friend as much as I will as a son."

Reporter Geoff Fox can be reached at (813) 779-4613 or gfox@tampatrib.com.

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