University remembers fallen soldier

In August UM lost a loyal friend and member of the Griz family — a guy who used to set off the cannon at home football games. He was reserved, honest and dependable; someone others would trust their lives with. He was 1st Lt. Joshua Hyland.

“He was one of the mentors among his class because people trusted him,” said Maj. Phillip McCutcheon, assistant professor in UM’s Department of Military Science. “They knew he wouldn’t lead them astray.”

And up until Hyland’s death, he was a man others in his division could depend on. On Sunday, Aug. 1, he was in a Humvee with three other soldiers when a bomb strapped underneath a bridge in Afghanistan exploded, killing all four. Hyland was 31.

Even before serving in the U.S. Army’s 101st Airborne Division, Hyland was a star among his peers. He already had been out in the real world and had created his own business, which gave him a lot of credibility, McCutcheon said.

A Distinguished Military Graduate, Hyland was ranked in the highest 20 percent of the nation’s ROTC students. In 2003 he received the Marshall Award, an honor given by Universities nationwide to the best ROTC senior at each institution.

After the 9-11 attacks, Hyland, who had already been enlisted, signed up for UM’s ROTC program on Sept. 12, 2001.

He graduated with a bachelor’s degree in business administration with a management emphasis in 2002. The following year, while finishing his master’s in business administration, he was the cadet battalion commander of his fellow ROTC students.

Because of his sacrifice, Hyland’s family members were presented the Bronze Star for bravery and meritorious service and the Purple Heart, for those who have died in service to their country.

“He realized there was a threat out there and he voluntarily put himself in that situation for the betterment of others,” McCutcheon said. “The numbers of deaths on the TV aren’t just numbers, they’re the Josh Hylands of their communities.”

—By Brianne Burrowes