Obituary of Matthew Wayne Wilson

Matthew Wayne Wilson was born in Orange, California on May 15, 1985, to Lisa and Wayne Wilson, Matt was their first child and first grandchild on his mother’s side and was dearly loved by his family. He is survived by his father Wayne, stepmother, Pam, his brother and best friend, Kevin, his grandmothers Christy and Dessie, his aunt Annie (Uncle Paul), and his cousins Nick (Silvia), Eric (Paula) and Ben who considered him a brother. He also is survived by many aunts, uncles, and cousins on his father’s side. He was preceded in death by his mother, Lisa and his grandfathers, Don and Lyndell. Matthew was raised in Valparaiso, Indiana and as a child was always quick to laugh and was always on wheels; bikes, roller blades or skateboards. His grandpa dubbed him “Crash” because often, there were bumps, bruises or occasional broken bones involved. Matt did not grow out of his love of wheels nor his little “crashes” as he recently shared a story with the family of clipping a parked car on his bike, of course laughing about it the whole time. Matt was a generous soul and was always willing to lend a helping hand. Helping his aunt and uncle build a house in the middle of a Phoenix summer, he volunteered to be on the roof; 5 minutes in, he was sweating his butt off, got his jeans snagged on a screw and again, he was laughing about it the whole time. There was never a shortage of laughter with Matt around. He was the first one we would call in the event of a UFO sighting. Haha. Living south of Phoenix, we would call him and say “Matt, we saw something strange in the sky heading north to Phoenix!” He would respond “Cool! …I’m on it! Already outside!” You could always count on Matt to be open-minded to the great beyond. Matt was a talented artist and graphic designer. He taught graphic design at Indiana State University and was respected for his talents by his peers and professors. He relocated to Phoenix 10 years ago with Kelley, who also became family to us. They shared many fun years together. He enjoyed nature, hiking, camping and photography. Matt would wonder why we didn’t lead with talking about his fur babies; his dogs Olive and Arthur and his cat, Fifi. They meant so much to him and brought such joy to his daily life. We love you Matt and will always hold you close in our hearts, a remarkable man that will always be remembered for his kindness and infectious laugh. Viewing Service will be held at: Legacy Funeral Home Chandler 1374 N. Arizona Avenue Chandler, AZ 85225 Tuesday, February 1, 2022 ~ 2pm-4pm In lieu of flowers, we are asking donations be sent to Home Fur Good https://homefurgood.org To view Matthew’s Tribute Video: https://www.tributeslides.com/tributes/preview/LP7FTSY7SL25T2RS