Captain Matthew Roland was an Air Force Academy graduate, on his third deployment, in Afghanistan, assigned as Special Tactics Officer, 23 Special Tactics Squadron, Hurlburt Field, Florida. He was posthumously awarded the Silver Star for alerting his convoy of an insider attack that took his life and that of a fellow airman but averted further loss of life.

In the face of the enemy, some people cower down, and some people step up. Actions like this take a lot of courage, poured on top of sacrifice, poured on top of intense training. To many, Captain Roland was the guy people depended on, turned to, looked up to. He was the kind of man other men strive to emulate.