DOB/DOD: October 21, 1986 (Taipei, Taiwan) – September 3, 2006; 19 years old
MARITAL STATUS: Unmarried
LOCAL ADDRESS: Signal Hill Road; Wilton
ENLISTMENT: July 5, 2005
MILITARY OCCUPATIONAL SPECIALTY: 11B10; Infantryman
UNIT: Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 1st Battalion, 68th Armor Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division; Fort Carson, Colorado
FAMILY: Born to William J. (1949-) and Shalini Madaras (1972-). One brother, Chris (1996-). One sister, Marie (1989-).
DECORATIONS: Awarded the Bronze Star Medal, Purple Heart Medal, Army Commendation Medal, Army Good Conduct Medal, National Defense Service Medal, Iraqi Campaign Medal with device, Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, Army Service Medal, and the Army Overseas Service Ribbon.
CIRCUMSTANCES: Died of injuries sustained when an Improvised Explosive Device (IED) detonated near his dismounted patrol during combat operations in Baqubah, Iraq. Killed on the same date as fellow Connecticut native Lance Corporal Philip A. Johnson, USMC.
OTHER: The namesake of Private First Class Nicholas A. Madaras Home and Kick For Nick Foundation. The Private First Class Nicholas A. Madaras Home is Connecticut’s first and only community-based transitional home exclusively for Women Veterans experiencing homelessness and their young children. Housed at the Madaras Home, which opened in 2011, are ten beds for Women Veterans and four beds, when available, for their young children. Kick For Nick supports U.S. troops and volunteer efforts in fostering peace and stability across the globe by delivering to underprivileged children the joy of play through the gift of a soccer ball donated in honor of Private First Class Nicholas A Madaras.
Wilton High School Class of 2005; Soccer team and yearbook photo
From The Hartford Courant on September 6, 2006
By David Funkhouser | Courant Staff Writer
BOMB CLAIMS “SON OF WILTON”
He’s 3rd State Serviceman To Die In Iraq In 9 Days
WILTON — Nicholas A. Madaras had plans for college, but he thought a stint in the Army would be good for him. His hometown is mourning him now, remembering the young man as a leader on the soccer field, a sharp student, and a caring person. Madaras, 19, a private first class, was on foot patrol with his 4th Infantry Division unit Sunday during a combat operation in the Iraqi town of Baqubah when a bomb exploded, fatally wounding him, according to the Defense Department. He is the third serviceman from Connecticut to have died in Iraq in a nine-day period. Madaras was scheduled to finish his tour in Iraq on October 24, three days after his 20th birthday. “Everybody here is very deeply saddened,” said Bob O’Donnell, associate principal at Wilton High School, from which Madaras graduated in 2005. “He was a good student, a great kid. It really is a tragic loss.” Madaras was the son of William J. and Shalini Madaras of Wilton and the older brother of Marie, a senior at Wilton High, and Christopher, a fourth-grader. His father referred questions to a National Guard spokesman Tuesday. Lieutenant Colonel John Whitford said the Guard notified the family of Madaras’s death Sunday evening, but he had no other information. First Selectman William F. Brennan said he and his wife expressed their condolences to the Madaras family on Monday. Brennan said his wife is an acquaintance of Shalini Madaras. “This is a very sad day for Wilton,” Brennan said. He ordered the town’s flags flown at half-staff “in respect for a beloved son of Wilton.” Governor M. Jodi Rell on Tuesday ordered U.S. and state flags, already at half-staff in honor of Marine Corporal Jordan C. Pierson, 21, of Milford, to remain at half-staff for Madaras and Lance Corporal Philip A. Johnson of Enfield. Johnson, 19, was killed Saturday by a roadside bomb. “This is a tremendously sad day for Connecticut,” Rell said Tuesday in a statement. On Monday, friends and family attended a memorial for Pierson, a member of Plainville-based Charlie Company, part of the 1st Battalion, 25th Marines, who was killed on August 25 in Fallujah. He is to be buried today in Arlington National Cemetery. Guidance counselor Dann Pompa worked closely with Madaras for the last two years he attended high school. Pompa recalled Madaras as a creative young man. “He was very genuine. A person who cared a lot about people, who related to both adults and peers,” Pompa said. “He was very introspective. There was a lot of depth in him.” Pompa said he received an email from Madaras at the end of last year discussing his plans to attend college and pursue a career in nursing. Jim Lewicki, Wilton’s head boys’ soccer coach, said Madaras started for the team for three years under former head coach Jim Cook, and he worked as the team manager when he stayed on an extra year at Wilton High. Madaras “was a quiet but intense” soccer player, Lewicki said. “He was a warrior — he worked his ass off, and he led by example.” He left for basic training soon after graduating, Lewicki said, and was recently home on leave. O’Donnell said the tight-knit school community was pulling together behind Madaras’ sister and the rest of the family. He remembered Madaras as “a sharp young man who was very caring, who cared for his friends and family.” Brennan did not know of any funeral arrangements as of Tuesday evening but said he understood it would take eight to 10 days for Madaras’s body to be returned home for burial.
From The Norwalk Hour on September 7, 2006
COMMUNITY OFFERS LOVE, SUPPORT TO MADARAS FAMILY
To the editor:
I would like to extend my deepest sympathy to the Madaras family on the tragic loss of Nicholas A. Madaras. Simple words of condolence are not sufficient, nor can they convey the depth of respect and support that is being expressed from everyone in Wilton and throughout the state. Though there seems little that one can say at this difficult time, so many good-hearted citizens, however, have asked me to pass on to you and your family their love and appreciation for Nick’s life and for the supreme sacrifice he has made for all of us. Nothing prepares you for the sorrow of learning that such a young member of our community is lost. It is still a shock, and there is widespread grief that Nick’s life was taken so early. So many share in your grief and the deep sense of loss. They appreciate that he answered the call to help his country and that he was willing to risk everything to defend our values and way of life. They understand that regardless of politics or personal beliefs, it is not up to the soldier who is in harm’s way to question what the mission is. He accepts it and moves forward. They understand that young people like Nick, who possess the courage and dedication to meet this enormous challenge, are truly remarkable. Please know that the entire community of Wilton mourns with you and that we are here for you and your family. And it is our hope that this outpouring of love and support will, in some small way, sustain you.
State Representative Toni Boucher
143rd District
From Joint Task Force Bravo Public Affairs August 24, 2018
By Maria Pinel
Kick for Nick: A wish that lives on
SAN PEDRO SULA, HONDURAS – At the heart of a soldier lies true Army values: loyalty, duty, respect, selfless service, honor, integrity, and personal courage. Private First Class Nicholas Madaras embodied the traits of a true soldier who left behind a legacy that survives his loss. Madaras, a native of Wilton, Connecticut, enlisted in the U.S. Army after his high school graduation. He was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 68th Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division during Operation Iraqi Freedom. As an ardent soccer player and youth coach, Madaras, inspired by talented children who improvised with tin cans to play in the Iraqi streets, dreamt of sharing his passion for the sport by donating soccer balls for them to play with. While visiting his parents during leave, he spoke to them about the children’s enthusiasm and asked them to send him a few balls to distribute upon his return. At 19 years old, one month after his leave, Private First Class Madaras was killed in Baqubah when an improvised explosive device detonated near his dismounted patrol on September 3rd, 2006, ending his wish of handing the soccer balls to the children he shared laughs with himself. Though Madaras’ life was lost, his initiative was not. It inspired his parents and Mr. Ken Dartley, a fellow Wilton native, to continue his legacy without imagining how one soldier’s story could touch the lives of children worldwide. Together, they created the Kick for Nick Foundation, an organization that collects soccer balls and donates them to children around the globe in honor of Private First Class Madaras, generating smiles, friendship, and a memory of goodwill with every ball. Honduras is one of the many countries that receive donations from Kick for Nick and deliver them with support from the Joint Task Force Bravo Civil Affairs office. The Civil Affairs team participates in multiple community outreach programs throughout the country and Central America, using these engagements as an opportunity to deliver soccer balls in some of the most austere and remote locations in the region. “Civil Affairs is the face of JTFB in the community. What we have done through JTFB and the Kick for Nick Foundation is link all these donations for children in vulnerable locations with social programs carried out not only by the task force but also by the government of Honduras,” said Iris Medina, JTF Bravo civil affairs specialist. During an engagement in San Pedro Sula, located in the Department of Cortes, Honduras, Medina met a young boy named Kenneth Fernandez who, like Nick, had a strong passion for soccer and dreams about being a professional player. “When I met Kenneth, he was just a little boy. His mom told me he liked playing soccer, so I gave him one of the balls and told him Nick’s story. Since then, I’ve been getting calls from his mom, and she tells me how, even after many years, this story still has an impact on him,” said Medina. Kenneth’s mother recalls how her son, 8 at the time, suffered from depression at a very early age and how he started to put more effort into soccer after hearing the story behind the soccer ball he received. “With a simple gift of a soccer ball, you can help a child out of a bad situation. This was his motivation; it really helped him a lot,” said Dania Rivera, Kenneth’s mom. “He remembers the story and says someday he will also give out soccer balls and that he will never forget where he got his motivation from.” Kenneth, who is now 13 years old, feels strongly about becoming a professional soccer player and trains every day to achieve his dream. We met in the Northern Military School in San Pedro Sula, where he first met Ms. Medina five years ago and where he was introduced to the legacy of Nick Madaras. “It was here in this school where Ms. Iris saw me and gave me the soccer ball. I thought it was weird that it had a name on it, so I asked her what it meant, and she told me the story of Nick Madaras. She told me he was a soldier and that he was passionate about soccer. During his time in Iraq, he saw kids who were good at soccer but played with cans and bottles, so it became his dream to give those kids soccer balls to play with. I was inspired by his good heart and his passion for soccer,” said Kenneth. San Pedro Sula is a city with warm people, a beautiful landscape, and a strong industry, but known for its high rates of violent crimes. This makes its population vulnerable, especially adolescents, who are likely to be exposed to gang activity at a very young age. Playing sports can decrease the chances for youths at risk of getting involved in crime and helps to instill personal discipline and values. Kenneth has made it his mission to become a motivator and role model for his friends at school, sharing Nick’s story and encouraging them to play. He also hopes to be able to give soccer balls and uniforms to underprivileged children himself when he is older. “I would bring Nick’s soccer ball to school, and my friends would ask who that was. Some of them didn’t like soccer, but once I told them the story, they would start playing with me,” said Kenneth. “I think it’s important to tell his story because of his good heart. Many kids would like to play, but they don’t have a ball, so they go out and do bad things instead. Soccer helps kids stay busy and focused. I was very inspired when I heard his story, and it motivated me because, to me, he represents a man with a good heart.” Through this act of kindness, the Kick for Nick Foundation causes an immeasurable impact, not just in rural areas of Honduras but in urban regions with potentially at-risk youths as well. This gift of the heart brings the joy of play and teamwork closer to children who may otherwise not have the possibility. “This is one of the programs that I treasure in my heart and that I have made my own,” said Medina. “It is an act of love towards others, and it is a legacy that Nick has left for children. Seeing a child smile is the best response we can get for what we do,” she said. Through Nick Madaras’s motivation and inspiration, the Kick for Nick Foundation has distributed more than 52,000 balls, surpassing what Nick could have imagined, bringing smiles to children not only in Iraq but in 47 countries all over the world. Every soccer ball that is delivered carries Nick’s name, continuing with this young soldier’s wish and spirit through the lives he has touched with his legacy.
Memorialized at the Wilton Connecticut YMCA, 404 Danbury Road, Wilton, Connecticut.
Private First Class Madaras is buried in Hillside Cemetery, 165 Ridgefield Road, Wilton, Connecticut; Dana Section, Plot 1717, Grave #4.
The inscription reads:
Do not stand at my grave and weep.
I am not there
I do not sleep.
I am a thousand winds that blow.
I am the diamond glints on snow.
I am the sunlight on ripened grain.
I am the gentle autumn rain.
When you awake in the morning’s hush,
I am the soft, uplifting rush
Of quiet birds in circling flight,
I am the soft star that shines at night.
Do not stand at my grave and cry.
I am not there.
I did not die.