Matt B. VS Cancer

Dearest Family & Friends,

On behalf of my mother and myself, we invite you to join us in memorializing MattB’s life on Earth!

A life well lived!

WHEN: 11:00AM – 1:00PM on Saturday, September 22nd

WHERE: American Legion Post 132, 143 South Lemon Street, Orange, CA 92866

NOTES: Brunch fare will be provided.

We’ve added a marker for the American Legion to the MattB Memorial Travel Options map, below.

View MattB’s Memorial Travel Options in a larger map

We will have between 45 minutes and an hour of scheduled programming, followed by about an hour of time for folks to come up, share some words or perhaps some music. Per his will, Matt has encouraged his musician friends to play during this celebration. We ask that musicians consider forming MattB tribute super groups to combine players and offerings. If you intend to participate in this open mic type of format, please be sure to share why your selection is special or significant with regard to Matt. Overall, if everyone could please be mindful, and try to keep contributions under 5 minutes in length so that we might extend as many opportunities for folks to share as possible, we’d greatly appreciate it. We were all so lucky to have known Matt in so many different capacities, and we look forward to embracing your various connections with his spirit.

Additionally, we are putting together a slideshow of photos spanning across Matt’s 35 years of life with us, so please continue to email MattBvsCancer@gmail.com any photos for consideration.

My mom and I will have 2 additional opportunities for folks to commune with us, so if you in town, please consider joining us for either or both of the following:

Friday, September 21st
4:00PM – Sunset and/or Fireworks
Happy Hour on the terrace at Orange Hill Restaurant
6410 E. Chapman Avenue
Orange, CA 92869
This is a beautiful spot to watch the sun go down from the hills above Orange County. The view is panoramic and spectacular. We are not making a formal reservation for a set space. Rather, we invite folks arriving into town to join us at their leisure to raise a glass for a weekend dedicated to Matt!

Sunday, September 23rd
Time TBD
Breakfast at The Filling Station Cafe
201 N. Glassell St.
Orange, CA 92866
Plenty of outdoor seating has made this a local favorite of ours. Again, we will not be making formal reservations, but would love to see as many familiar faces as possible.

If you are unable to join us, but would like to contribute to this celebration, we are accepting donations to help cover the cost of the catering and hall rental via the PayPal account linked with the ‘Donate’ button on the right-hand sidebar of this blog. Any unused funds will be donated to Braille Beats, the fine arts intensive program for visually impaired youth that Matt supported as a cabin leader, music teacher, and echo location instructor under his good friend and mentor, Daniel Kish.

If there are any additional questions regarding the weekend’s events, please contact either my mom or myself, or feel free to email MattBvsCancer@gmail.com.

If you have not already, PLEASE RSVP SO THAT WE CAN GET AN ACCURATE COUNT FOR THE MEMORIAL’S CATERER ASAP.

Thank you, and we look forward to celebrating MattB with all of you!
Ginny & Andrea

Dear Friends & Family,

We know that everyone is anxious to know details for plans to memorialize Matt’s life. Please note that our mom has selected Saturday, September 22nd for that very purpose. We are quickly putting together additional details for an exact venue and time frame, and we’ll keep you up-to-date as those decisions are made.

That said, initial thoughts are that we will need a pretty significant hall or space with adequate facilities, etc. to contain Matt’s extended group of supporters. We are now reviewing options for such a space in, or near, Orange, California where Matt & Heidi lived.

For those traveling in from out of town, the closest airports are John Wayne in Santa Ana (SNA) or Long Beach (LGB). These 2 airports are smaller in size, and may have limited car rental options. However, we’ve got loads of local drivers at our disposal, ready and willing to help shuttle folks in from these airports to hotels, or to any of the many car rental companies in Anaheim, which is the next town over from Orange. (With the Disney theme parks located in Anaheim, there should be some opportunities for competitive rates.) We’ve had family stay at La Quinta Inn in Anaheim and Ayres Hotel in Anaheim, and both were given good reviews as clean and comfortable options. The local Best Western in Orange is nearby, and the amenities are sparse, but it may also be an option if your expectations are modest or your budget is tight. (Los Angeles International Airport [LAX] may also be an option for travel. It’s about 40 miles away, and in traffic that can take nearly an hour and a half sometimes, but it is an option.)

Please feel free to take a look at a map of the area, below. Markers for the 3 local airports, and our respective homes have been indicated for your reference. Simply zoom out to get a wider perspective on the map, and click on the blue bubbles to get the name of the location noted.
View MattB’s Memorial Travel Options in a larger map

We’re currently putting together a schedule of programming for Matt’s service, but we will also be setting aside some time for friends and family to share words, songs, or tributes of any kind in somewhat of an open mic forum to follow. Ideally, we’d like to set up food and refreshments as somewhat of a pot luck as again, Matt’s local Southern California community is anxious to welcome our extended group of supporters.

We’re collecting photos of Matt to pair with various tributes in either or both a slideshow and some sort of pamphlet to take home. Initially, we will be mining the MattB Vs Cancer Facebook Group for material to include, but if you do not connect using Facebook and would still like to share some photos or words, please send them to MattBvsCancer@gmail.com and we’ll do our best to include your submission, space and time permitting.

For those that are able to arrive prior to the service on Saturday, September 22nd, we will be setting up some informal gathering spaces and times to convene on Thursday (9/20) and Friday (9/21), as well as a possible brunch on Sunday (9/23), pending folks’ travel schedules. We certainly understand that everyone’s arrangements will be different to accomodate family and work obligations, and we would like to embrace as many of Matt’s supporters as possible.

Please get in touch with either our mom, Ginny, or myself, Andrea (Dre) to let us know of your intention to join us on Saturday, 9/22. You can email mattbvscancer@gmail.com if you do not have our individual cell phone numbers or personal email addresses. We’d like to know roughly how many people we are expecting so that we can plan accordingly, but the service will be open to all MattB lovers.

Thanks again for your continued support. We definitely feel the outpouring of love and sympathies from so many, and it truly conveys just how much of an impact Matt really had in such a short amount of time on this Earth. We look forward to sharing Matt’s light and love with you all on September 22nd!

Peace to you and yours,
Ginny & Andrea

To my fabulous Matt B:

Blackbird singing in the dead of night. Take these broken wings and learn to fly. All your life, you were only waiting for this moment to arise. Blackbird Fly.

Remember when you made Jake learn this for me since you knew this was my favorite song? This song has special meaning to me in my life but even more so, knowing that you saw me! I KNOW you did. The real me. That is a rare gift to see people . Their spirit, despite their outward appearance. I am forever grateful to have crossed paths with you. I see you, but more importantly God sees you. I am grateful for our wonderful talks full of honesty and friendship. I want to be selfish and keep you on solid ground, you are a great light, but really too bright and luminous to stay here. You have learned all the lessons you need to learn. You have given me so much more than I could ever give to you I am forever grateful friend. I love you forever and hope to hold your hand again.

Heather*

*Heather’s sons were Matt’s guitar students.