Mickal O Matthews

Mike, also known as PawPaw to his grandkids, Daddy to his 2 girls, Rhino (He hated it!!), Slim, Mr. Mom (because he was like a den mom. Always looking out for everyone and making sure they were taken care of) and his wife Betty always told him he had “Popeye Arms” & Flintstone Feet, was born to Gladys Ophelia and Willie John Matthews Sr. He was the second of seven children and graduated from Monticello High School in 1974.In 1975, after graduating high school, Mike went on the serve in the United States Army and later the Army Reserves. After leaving the Army, Mike began work as a Diesel Mechanic and father. Raising his two daughters was his favorite thing in the world, the he had for his two baby girls, wife, Betty, grandchildren, and family was indescribable. In his free time Mike loved a number of things, including, line dancing, deer hunting, fishing, nascar, camping, traveling, anything outdoors, LSU football, his dogs that have since passed, Baby Girl and Shadow, and restoring his dad's 1965 Ford F100 Stepside with his oldest grandson, Ian.

Mike had a spectacular personality. His heart was enormous and he was known to give the shirt off his back to help anyone. He was a mama's boy to his core and extremely hard working. Mike didn't have an idle bone in his body, he always had to be doing something! Once it was time to kick back, however, he would kick back in his recliner and relax with his fur babies! After a good meal he would pull his cap over his eyes and pass smooth out! And don't you dare call it a "hat".. "it's a CAP!". Mike was goofy, loving, a perfectionist, stubborn, a natural caretaker and family was his life. He loved BIG. Here are a few memories that demonstrate just how much he was loved and will be missed:

"Mike & his brother Dan went deer hunting in Tensas (as they did annually) and decided it was a good idea to make their own tree stand (which looking back they saw the errors of their way) They put the tree stand on the tree and tried climbing it. As Mike started climbing, he accidentally kicked the stand, and it dropped all the way to the ground. Mike was stuck! At that point he tried to channel his inner fireman, wrapped his arms and legs around the tree trunk, and slid down the tree like it was a fireman’s pole. All the while, his brother Dan was busting a gut, tears rolling down from laughing so hard! By the time Mike reached the bottom, there was no hair left on his legs or arms where he was gripping the tree! Mike was so mad that his brother was laughing at him. Once it was all said and done, they stopped at the store to get some lotion to soothe his pain. Looking back, they both could not help but laugh at this memory!"

"When calling daddy (Mike) you would always be greeted with “Yellow” (Hello) or if it was his daughters “Hey Baby Girl”"

"When his daughters lived in Florida, he would drive down from Texas to Florida every summer and before heading back to Texas, daddy would take us to the beach to go nighttime sand crab hunting."

"Anytime we made a road trip or drove down the interstate, in order to get a Blizzard from Dairy Queen, we (his daughters) had to name the Make and Model of the Semi Trucks on the opposite side of the highway. The size of the blizzard we could get would depend on the number of Semi’s we could correctly identify."

"Teaching his oldest daughter, Kristin, how to 2-step & line dance, by having her stand on his feet while he moved around."

"Daddy was the BEST line dancer & 2-Stepper out there! Always sporting his super starched shirts, starched jeans, cowboy boots, and one of his many cowboy hats!"

"He loved riding around with his 2 girls in his old cherry red convertible top corvette with the top down!"

"Sitting in daddy’s lap helping him drive down the back roads and once we were a little older, he taught both of his daughters how to drive a stick in his old blue Chevy 1500!"

"Waking up to Flapjacks for breakfast and the best eggs you ever had!"

"Sprinkling “reindeer food” in the yard on Christmas Eve when he lived in Gladewater."

"Getting to play on all of the new Semi Trucks when he worked at Texas Kenworth in Longview! (his daughters)"

"Giving daddy butterfly kisses!"

"Daddy would always tell his girls (and they would always say it back to him) “I love you like a circle that never ends”"

"Mike and his oldest grandson, Ian, worked on building a treehouse"

"Taking his oldest grandson, Ian, out & teaching him how to shoot a .22 Rifle"

"Seeing daddy always covered in grease & smelling like diesel & obsession cologne (which he finally stopped using later in life and converted to Cuba)"

"The year he started school, he had separation anxiety from his momma. No-one (including principal, teachers, etc) could make him stay at school once he discovered he could escape out of the classroom window to make a beeline for home where his momma was. His mom took him back to school many times just to have him show back up at home a few minutes later. Momma absolutely couldn't be out of his sight for more than a couple of minutes before Mike would go on the hunt looking for his momma. When his momma would tell it with Mike present he would get that smile that only Mike could smile batting his eyes as if to say 'Oh no I would never'!"

From his sister, Sarah Jane: "I wished other girls were as lucky as I was to have a big brother like I did. He was always my go to no matter what the problem was, always listening, always gave me the best advice."

"Took Ian fishing on Cross Lake and he was using the trolling motor to get close to a tree where Ian had a lure stuck and he ran into a stump and bent the trolling motor propeller so Ian had to kick off the tree as hard as he could so they could get out"

Left to cherish his memory is his wife, Betty Matthews; daughters Kristin Miller and her husband Justin, and Gwen Long and husband Jeremy; step-children Richard Warren, Christy Mueller and Rachel Watts; grandchildren Ian Mickal Boyett and Beaux Alexander Miller; mother, Gladys Matthews; siblings Willie John Matthews, Jr., Dan Matthews, Kevin Matthews, and Sarah Matthews; and many beloved nephews, nieces and cousins.

Mike joins in Heaven his father, Willie John Matthews Sr.; siblings Leonard Matthews and Richard Matthews; and nephews Shon Matthews and Kelly Matthews.

A Celebration of Life for Mike will be held Saturday, April 28, 2023 beginning at 11:00am with Joe Matthews officiating.

In lieu of fresh flowers donations may be made to gofundme.com/f/mickal-o-matthews to go towards funeral and living expenses for his wife, Betty.