2019 should have been a banner year for Matt. That summer he graduated from Vanderbilt with his MD/PhD, and found out he was accepted into a residency program at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia. Later that fall he exchanged wedding vows with his beautiful wife Monica at Christ the King church in Nashville. The road ahead looked full of promise… until an MRI exam just a few days before Christmas turned everything upside down. The symptoms Matt had attributed to working an exhausting schedule at the hospital turned out to be caused by something far worse: a brain tumor. Surgery followed quickly afterwards. When the pathology report came back it indicated the tumor was a malignant form of cancer known as glioblastoma multiforme (GBM), one of the most aggressive types. As a doctor, Matt knew exactly what that diagnosis meant.

Following an initial round of treatment (surgery, radiation, chemo), Matt was well enough to do shifts at the local Veterans hospital. In between he studied for his so-called “Step 3” exam, which he ultimately passed in 2020 earning him an official MD license. But as the calendar turned to 2021 the disease which had remained at bay for almost a year started to reassert itself. Matt’s focus throughout 2021 can be summed up by one of the entries in his journal: “I must continue to take care of myself so I have the power to care for others I love.” Soon it became 2022, and on a festive Saturday in February Matt hosted his swim team friends from Duke who traveled in from all over the country to visit. The following day was Super Bowl Sunday, and Matt and I stayed up late to watch the game. The next day was Valentines Day – Matt’s final one with us.

I didn’t come upon the story of Johnny Gunther until after Matt had died. Like Matt, Johnny Gunther had developed GBM. As I read the book I was struck by the similarities between their experiences: the young age at which they had contracted the disease, their insistence on completing their education even while dealing with their illness, and their constant pursuit of treatments that offered brief moments of hope only to be followed by gut-wrenching setbacks. There is however, one profound difference between Johnny’s and Matt’s stories – and that has to do with faith. The Gunthers didn’t raise their son in any particular religious tradition, so Johnny was left searching for a God he never got to know. Matt’s upbringing was far different. His Kairos retreat at Loyola in Junior year really made an impact on him. And I’m grateful it did, because I don’t know how Matt could have coped with his circumstance without knowing God was at his side. As he wrote in his journal: “I often view life as a challenge and God just gives us those challenges. God also provides all of the abilities and support we need. These days are hard, but God will continue to provide to help me.” At Matt’s eulogy I stated:

The name Mathew means “Gift of God”. Matt’s gift hasn’t simply been the life he’s shared with us; it’s also the message that we too can thrive in the face of life’s challenges if we have faith.

Amen to that.