“I met Matt at his friend’s house. We connected immediately and talked for hours and hours. Everyone said we would make the perfect couple but we were both in other relationships at that time. It wasn’t until four years later, in November 2015, that I would see Matt again when he listened to his intuition and walked across the street to a mutual friend of ours house. I went and sat at the back of the garage to get away from all the monkey chatter and have a few moments alone. I heard the door open and in walked Matt. Again, we talked for hours upon hours. After that, we hung out a couple more times before going on our first date and it was then we knew we were that “perfect couple” who had met years before.
Matt was the most amazing and selfless man I have ever met; the love of my life and my hero. He was loving, kind-hearted, caring, compassionate, empathetic, kind-hearted, comforting, strong, brave, courageous, adventurous, goofy, respectful, intelligent, wise, and had a keen sense of Yankee ingenuity.
He always worried about others but didn’t want others worrying about him. He was a natural healer and always willing to give a helping hand to anyone in need. He even rescued an injured owl and nursed it back to health with his aunt until the owl was strong enough to be released back into the wild.
Matt valued family most in life. He was an amazing dad to his daughter with cerebral palsy and worried about her and her future. He always looked after and cared for those he loved, making sure they were safe and protected – taking a promise he made to his grandfather years ago to look after his grandmother, mother, and aunt in the family very seriously.
When I told Matt, “I trust you with life”. He also took that very seriously and had the rare opportunity to prove to me that I could. He is part of the Divine intervention that saved my life in what should have been a fatal car accident for me that night; risking his own life doing whatever it took to get me out of the vehicle and to safety before the ambulance arrived.
I have so many wonderful memories of Matt it’s hard to choose just one as my favorite. I miss the way he would make me laugh and the way he loved to sing. He always sang “Broken” by Seether to me and “Next to Be With You” by Mr. Big. One of my favorite memories of Matt is when he sang karaoke on our first date. I remember thinking how brave he was. He loved to sing and he loved music too. Matt liked Eminem, and 80s, 90s, and classic rock. One of his favorite songs is the original version of “Soul Shine” by Warren Haynes. He often used music to express his emotions and feelings.
Matt was adventurous. He had been base jumping and sky diving, he even talked about becoming a sky diving instructor.
He was a great listener. He showed me through his actions that he not only heard what I said. He showed me that I am lovable and how a woman should be treated, honored, and respected by a man. He showed me healthy relationships are possible and he showed me it was safe to trust. He was the type of man that I thought only existed in fairy tales. I never thought I would find that kind of love in my life. It is because of his love that I was able to break the cycle of abusive relationships that have run throughout my ancestral lines for generations. We had our share of ups and downs but we stuck by each’s other side and worked through them.
Shortly after the car accident, we had mapped out our future together and were in the process of making them come true. He had just returned from Maine to start laying the groundwork for us to move up there and start the rest of our lives together. We had plans of getting married, starting our own family together along with his daughter from a previous relationship. He would work doing odd jobs, as he was a jack of all trades, and planned on helping me build and run my holistic healing center while I finished school. But all that was taken away in an instant when he relapsed.
One of the greatest impacts Matt has had on my life is that he is part of the Divine intervention that saved my life. We were a car accident that should have killed me. I am alive today to be able to share his story because he risked his own life that night to get me out of that car to safety before the ambulance arrived. The first time, I saw him after the car accident, he said to me, “I saw the smoke and steam coming out of the engine and I knew had to get you out of the car, no matter what it took. I wasn’t going to lose you…”
He helped me to see my beauty inside and out, and after his passing, he taught me to love myself, even more, the way he loved me. Matt has inspired several of my published pieces in the bestselling inspirational and soulful 365 Book series books including the Healing Power of Love and A Valiant Act of Love as well as some of my future writings.
I will always know Matt as the kind, caring, loving, loyal, and compassionate person he was. I miss the times when we would relax or watch a movie on the couch. I miss our soul-deep conversations. Simply put, I miss everything about Matt. Every day I wake up, I know that it is because of the grace of God, Matt risking his life to save mine in the car accident and the power of love that I am alive today. Matt and the love we share will always be a part of my story and a part of who I am.
Written by Isabella Rose