Lightning Kills Federal Lawyer From Virginia on North Carolina Beach

A Department of Justice lawyer from Prince William County was fatally struck by lightning Monday while jogging on the beach on the Outer Banks of North Carolina, authorities said.

Matthew Glomb, 49, of Woodbridge was remembered by friends and colleagues as a family man and a deeply religious person who had a great sense of humor.

"The second you met him he cared about you," said Sara Scichilone, 21, who met Glomb through Chrysalis, a group that runs Christian youth retreats.

Glomb joined the Justice Department in 2002 after a career in the U.S. Coast Guard that included a stint as a military judge, said Justice Department spokesman Matthew Miller. At the Justice Department, Glomb worked in the aviation-admiralty office and specialized in maritime law. He was a 1994 graduate of George Washington University's law school.

Friends said that outside the office, Glomb was devoted to the youth he worked with at Chrysalis.

Jay Nesmith, who teamed up with Glomb to plan one event, said the two e-mailed frequently, discussing details down to the choice of songs. Nesmith said Glomb poured energy into the planning but was also easygoing.

Once, Nesmith recalled, Glomb suggested a secular song. Nesmith wrote back and suggested a Christian selection instead.

"He said, 'Cool, dude,' " Nesmith said. "He was a fun guy. He was very easy to relate to."

Police in Southern Shores, N.C., said Glomb was jogging on the beach about 5:20 p.m. Monday when a severe thunderstorm rolled in and he was struck by lightning. Authorities said he was killed instantly.

Scichilone recalled a time when she was in a group of college students who prepared for a Chryslais retreat by pulling an overnighter in a Fairfax County church. Early the next morning, Glomb, who was among the supervising adults, surprised them with a warm, buttery, homemade breakfast treat known as monkey bread.

"Of course we devoured it before anyone else woke up," Scichilone said. "Even through he was a lot older than us college kids, he was like a big kid at heart."