Matthew Hogenson

Matthew (Matt) Brian Kershaw Hogenson of Bellevue, Washington, passed away on May 2, 2023, at the age of 25. He was born on June 12, 1997, in Yakima, Washington, to Brian and Stephanie (Hansen) Kershaw. Although his father Brian passed away prior to Matthew’s birth, he was delighted when he learned he was to become a father. In the years that followed, Matthew and his mom developed an incredibly special bond, and both sets of his grandparents took active roles throughout his life.

Matthew moved to Bellevue, Washington, when he was just a year old and it became his home. He started Kindergarten at Saint Louise, and later moved to the Sammamish plateau, attending Cascade Ridge through third grade. In 2008, Matthew’s mother was remarried to Andrew (Andy) Hogenson and, together with his two daughters, Devon and Bronwyn (Bryn), they became a blended family of five. They moved back to the Bellevue area, living in the Enatai neighborhood, and Andy adopted Matt, dedicating himself to living up to the honor that was bestowed upon him as Matt’s father. In 2009, the family grew by one when Matt’s brother Jack was born, instantly becoming Matt’s most favorite person in the whole world. Their bond and love continues on in “Bro Appreciation Day” each July 14th, the day in between each of their birthdays.

As a young child, Matthew was inquisitive, mischievous and kind. There wasn’t a Lego set he couldn’t build or a dinosaur he couldn’t name. He excelled in the verbal and written word, often shocking adults with his mature vocabulary and voracious appetite for reading. To his mother’s shock, he selected the first Harry Potter book for his third grade book report project. Initially taking turns reading with his mother, he soon became frustrated when she took breaks and so he took over, full steam ahead on his magical adventure. As he matured he became fascinated with World War II and would read everything he could get his hands on about it. He developed into an impressive writer, getting a near perfect score on his SATs for the Writing segment.

Matthew was a gifted and creative musician. He inherited his father’s talent and taught himself to play the guitar around the age of 10. He loved all genres, but initially went thru a big Beatles phase, followed by Pink Floyd, AC/DC, Green Day and others, later leaning more towards Rap. He could hear a song and pick it up on the guitar with little effort. His love of music grew and he formed a band in high school called Tracer, playing lead guitar and sometimes drums, and was lead vocalist. His band played at school lunches for Homecoming Week, and also for the end of school party “The Rumble”. He began creating his own music and lyrics and would find “Open Mic” nights at local venues and perform. He published some of his music to SoundCloud, his most popular song being Heavensent.

Matt played many sports growing up, including individual sports like golf, skiing and hours of long boarding, but eventually settled primarily into baseball. He played Select for the Bellevue Baseball Club, and later at Bellevue High School. Hogey was a right-fielder, and was fast! He made some seriously heroic plays and his family and grandparents were always there cheering him on. When the unfortunate day came that he was cut from the team, Matt gathered his gear, head held high, and walked straight across campus to the soccer field and talked his way into a position on the team, playing mid-field. His perseverance was one of his biggest assets. Because of his speed, he tried out for the cross-country team, making Varsity both years and consistently running under 5 minute miles.

Matt was academically impressive as well. His grades earned him the role of President of the National Junior Honor Society in junior high at Chinook MS. At Bellevue High School he also made National Honor Society, passing all of his AP classes with 5’s for college credit, earning him an “AP Scholar with Honor” award from the College Board.

Matt loved competing in debates, winning 6 “Best Speaker” gavels with Junior State of America (JSA), and attending 9 conventions. He served as a cabinet member for the Pacific Northwest regional chapter, and Vice President of the Bellevue chapter. Simultaneously, while at Bellevue High School, he was President of the Model UN Club, Vice President and President of the Young Republican’s Club, and Copy Editor and Feature Story Writer for the school newspaper, “The Barque”.

But more importantly, Matthew was a Christian. Baptized at St. Paul’s Cathedral in Yakima, he later received First Reconciliation and First Communion at Mary Queen of Peace in Sammamish, and was Confirmed a Catholic at St. Louise in Bellevue, where he served as a peer minister to the Life Teen Youth Group. He loved attending Camp N-Sid-Sen in Idaho for three summers, and talked for years later about the mission trip he took to Guatemala thru Plymouth Church in Seattle. Even as an adult, Matt’s Bible was never far away. He took comfort in opening it and reading the first randomly selected passage he saw, giving him a meaningful thought for the day.

Through the years Matthew experienced lots of International travel with his family. Some of his favorite experiences were cruising the Caribbean, exploring the ruins and Colosseum in Rome, bike riding thru the streets of Paris to the Eiffel Tower with his dad, riding the Chunnel and visiting the Tower of London, sitting field side at an FC Barcelona match at Camp Nou, a New Year’s Eve masquerade party in Mendoza, a day at the beach in Vina del Mar in Chile, eating traditional roast duck in Shanghai, and getting swarmed by a giant crowd of locals in Tiananmen Square who had to physically touch and take photos next to the light-haired, blue-eyed teenage boy in a leather jacket. A lifetime of memories packed into such a short time.

In the last few years of his life, Matthew had relocated out to Sequim, Washington, and was enjoying working on cars and his motorcycle. He met and fell in love with his girlfriend, I-li, and they shared many special memories together. Continuing his love of travel, they explored New York, Miami and DC together, with arrangements made to visit Puerto Rico after her graduation from Fordham University School of Law in May. They were planning a future together and Matt cared for her deeply. His family will always be grateful for the special role she played in his life and for the happiness she gave him.

Matthew left this world entirely too soon for his family to bear, but he will live forever in the hearts and memories of all who knew him. As his brother Jack says, “I’m sorry that we have to pick so few words to describe such a great person’s life.”

Matthew is preceded in death by his father, Brian Kershaw, grandfathers, Phillip Hansen and Galen Hogenson, grandmother Shirlee Hogenson, and uncle Peter Hogenson.

The family would like to thank his grandparents Don and Pat Bundy for the care and dedication they showed Matthew in his final years, and ask that in lieu of flowers, please consider making a donation in Matthew’s honor to Youth Eastside Services (YES) of Bellevue.

Family and friends are invited to attend a Mass at Sacred Heart Church in Bellevue, on Monday, May 15, 2023, at 10:30am.