Matthew is survived by his children, Hugh, Hollie, Daxton & Dalilah, his parents, Daniel & JoAnne Kimber, his siblings, Jeremiah (Min Min), Kayla and Savanah (Kohl), his niece, Elara, many Aunties & Uncles, Cousins and Friends. He is also survived by the love of his life, Jenni.
A Gathering in Matthew's Memory will be held in the Discovery Room at the Best Western Premier Denham Inn & Suites, 5207 50 Avenue, Leduc, Alberta, on Tuesday, July 2, 2024, between 1:00 – 5:00 pm.
In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in Matthew's name to a wonderful place that meant so much to Matthew, where he found healing and acceptance: Walter A. Slim Thorpe Recovery Centre Society (Alberta), www.thorperecoverycentre.org, an organization founded on Real Life.Real Recovery.
Matthew’s Story:
Matthew loved to be always moving – never idle. As a baby, he could be held close only in sleep. As soon as he could stand, he was jumping. As soon as he could walk, he was running.
Once, when he was little, his parents bought him a children’s sized quad. Matthew, who was three or four at the time, was so excited to ride his gift but had to wait his turn. Matthew’s glee was written all over his face as he watched others take their turn. He was excited for every single person who took their turn before him, even though all he wanted to do was get on that crazy quad. That excitement carried through his whole life as Matthew was a gift giver and gift receiver! He’d get excited over the smallest things.
Matthew played soccer as a young boy and, later, discovered wrestling in high school. One particular tournament, when extended family experienced the world of wrestling, was triumphant for Matthew when he took out his opponent so quickly that all of us missed the challenge after spending a few long hours in the stands, enjoying the pungent air of many teenage boys exerting themselves. His wrestling accomplishments took Matthew to three national competitions. Our gratitude to his coaches at Christ the King in Leduc, who saw something special in Matthew and helped him develop confidence as a young man. Matthew was confident in his ability to do a lot of things.
Matthew struggled with certain parts of his life throughout adulthood. In some areas, Matthew felt he was not good enough. We don't know why, but we do know his struggle is something shared by many people today.
Matthew's true nature was one of generosity – particularly of his time helping others. If someone needed help with cementing, construction, manual labour, installing Christmas lights, gluten-free baked goods (not always successfully), teaching a five-year old to rollerblade or win at cards, Matthew was there. In fact, countless family & friends have had home improvements completed in part to Matthew’s ‘getter-done’ attitude.
Matthew was very smart, resourceful and determined. As he grew, he built a new and tougher personality: a personality of cool, of fun, of hard work and goals. He built stubborn walls to protect that fragile self. He constructed a defensive, brittle confidence too. But those who loved him saw through this exterior to his true, genuine heart.
What Matthew really wanted, more than anything else, was to build a family. He wanted to be a husband and a Dad. His continuous struggles made this dream difficult and challenging; however, Matthew was so happy to have found a young lady and her two gorgeous kids to begin his own family, and then they were blessed with twins not long after. When being all together as a family was no longer possible, Matthew worked hard for himself to understand how he could be a better person, a better father, son, brother, cousin and friend. And when he “reset his clock”, we were all so happy to see this positive turn to a brighter future and for a couple of years, Matthew took the daily steps to ensure that he stayed on the path he craved his entire life.
The weeks leading up to Matthew passing, he was working on some woodworking projects for people in his life. It was a hobby he learned from his Dad, shared with his brother, Jeremiah and started to complete projects for others in his life. He took the twins to see some waterfalls for their birthday (it’s what they told him they wanted) – a cold, wet and snow-covered day in February! And so, four hours of travel later, they saw their first live waterfall. The kids looked cold in the photos but they all had happy smiles on their faces – this wonderful, cool adventure they took on their birthday. He was like that – wonderful, cool and adventurous, wanting to please the people in his life.
The tragic reality is that Matthew had more plans, future adventures, and goals that included his kids, family and friends that loved him. We all wanted a better life for him. We worried about him and we are so grateful for the time we got to spend together.
In the end, it's all about the same human needs: to feel valued, to feel important and special, to belong, to be loved.
Matthew is now at rest, and we hold him close within every one of us. Please hold him close, as we do, in your mind and your spirit. Remember the meaning of this tragedy. Matthew was a man who struggled with some things but at the very center of his heart, he was worthy and special and deserving. Let us find and encourage within ourselves, within our society, those gifts that make each of us special: not star power, not intellectual prowess, but the extraordinary beauty of the simple human heart.
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