Matthew Phillip Essig

Matthew Phillip Essig was born March 10, 1987, in Kansas City, Missouri, and spent his first few years of life in Fort Leavenworth, Kansas. The family moved to Berlin in 1992 where Matthew began playing tennis with a professional coach. One of his favorite memories was getting rewarded with a Coca Cola after practice for nailing his target shots. The family lived in Grafenwoehr from 1994-1997 where Matthew joined cub scouts and was recruited to play for a German youth soccer team and stood out as one of the tallest and fastest players on the roster. In Grafenwoehr Matthew's passion for arcade games began, where he often got in trouble for missing curfew to spend extra time in the game hall. The family moved to Colorado Springs in 1997 and on to Yorktown, VA in 1999, and Carlisle, PA in 2000 where Matthew continued with his scouting and soccer endeavors. In 2001, the family moved to Fort Myer/ Arlington, VA where Matthew enjoyed working as a lifeguard on base. Matthew earned the Eagle Scout rank from Boy Scouts of America in 2004. He graduated from Washington & Lee High School, where he rowed crew, and went on to graduate from Radford University with a bachelor's in Computer Science. Matthew was a software engineer working as a federal contractor for the entirety of his professional career.

Matthew met his wife, Tamika, in Arlington in 2012. They were married in 2018 and welcomed their first child, Maren Lee, in 2020. Matthew and Tamika relocated to Orlando, Florida in 2021 and welcomed their son, Clovis Christopher, in 2022.

Matthew was a lifelong hobbyist and enjoyed reading, motorcycle riding and maintenance, video games, beer brewing, investing, and exploring rare whiskies. Most of all, Matthew loved his family and friends and valued time spent with them. He was looking forward to watching his children grow and sharing experiences with them around the world.

He is survived by his wife of four years, Tamika; daughter, Maren Lee (2.5); son, Clovis Christopher (5 months); parents (Colonel ret) Christopher and Doreen Essig (Arlington, VA); sister, Kaitlin Essig (London, U.K.); and brother SFC Ryan Essig (Fort Bragg).

If you would like to show your support, please visit the link below. The Essig Family thanks you for all your thoughts and prayers.

https://www.mealtrain.com/trains/9vyr9o/donate/

A celebration of life for Matthew will be held Tuesday, December 27, 2022 at 11:00 AM at Baldwin-Fairchild Conway FH, 1413 S Semoran Blvd, Orlando, Florida 32807. Following the celebration of life will be a memorial service from 11:00 AM to 2:00 PM at Baldwin Fairchild Funeral Home, 1413 S Semoran Blvd., Orlando, FL 32807.