Matthew Rice

A young man with a beautiful spirit and heartwarming smile, Matthew Rice always found something in life to be excited about. He was active and energetic, always laughing or finding ways to make others laugh. His greatest happiness, though, was to make the people he loved happy, his parents, his brothers, his grandparents, his entire extended family.

In 1990, the year of Matt's birth, Operation Desert Storm began in the Persian Gulf, Nelson Mandela was released from a South African prison after serving 27 years for his opposition to apartheid, and the space shuttle, Discovery, was launched from Cape Canaveral, Florida. Amidst these historic world events, John and Diana (Roseboom) Rice of Kalamazoo, Michigan, were having a celebration of their own as they welcomed the birth of their son, Matthew Ryan, in the early morning hours of January 17, 1990, at Borgess Hospital. This beautiful, white haired angel brought great joy to the Rice family.

The youngest of three boys, Matt was an active little boy with lots of energy. He loved to run and play, and also got into his fair share of mischief with his brothers. In their quieter moments, all throughout his life, Matt and his brothers liked to play Uno, video games and Hot Wheel cars together. When he was old enough to begin preschool, Matt attended Chirpin's in Comstock and Young 5's at Green Meadow Elementary School. He then entered North Elementary School, where he began special education classes with Mrs. Nyhoff. Matt learned much from Mrs. Nyhoff during the six years he spent in her class. Unfortunately, Matt had to deal with people reacting to his different appearance and situation, but he soon realized how to react to them after singing "Don't Laugh At Me" with his class in a talent show. For several summers, Matt attended the summer program at Croyden Elementary School and also rode horses at the Cheff's Therapeutic Center.

While in Elementary School in Mrs. Nyhoff's class, in November of 1997, Matthew's young life took a critical turn. After becoming ill, it was discovered that Matthew had a mass on his brain stem and underwent extensive radiation and chemotherapy treatments, though the mass never completely went away. Over the next several months, Matt's health was plagued with many problems, including sleep apnea, a tracheotomy and using a wheelchair. Finally, in March of 1998, he was able to go home. That same year, the Make -A- Wish Foundation granted Matt his wish to go to a race at the Michigan Speedway. Better than that, he also attended the timed trials on Saturday and got to talk to Ernie Irvan, the 1994 Racing Champion of the Skittles car #36. Along with his parents and brothers, Matt also sat front row to watch the race that Sunday. Irvan himself had suffered some physical setbacks after a tragic accident and had made a comeback, making him a hero of Matt's. Matt had always been fond of hot rods and spent many summers at car shows with his family. He especially loved street rods and actually got to sit in one. His room was filled with car and monster truck posters and photos of some of his favorite hot rods.

Not a day passed without Matt giving out many hugs and kisses to everyone he loved; hence, he became "Huggy Bear." His only objective was to make others happy and he selflessly shared his innocent optimism with everyone around him. Some times he did this by dressing up as a clown, which he loved to do. Matt also had a tender heart for animals and babies and had three cats of his own. He loved Barney and saw him once at a show in Grand Rapids. Matt was happiest, though, when spending time with his family. He liked shopping and enjoyed trips to Shipshewana with his mom or visits to the mall, where he could get his favorite pretzel or eat at the Empire Buffet. Like most teenagers, Matt liked eating out, particularly at Old Country Buffet for their cheese pizza, however, staying home and baking cookies was always nice too.

In the summer, Matt's family often visited his Aunt Julie, who lived on Lake Michigan, where he loved to play in the water. He also enjoyed it when Aunt Julie took him Christmas shopping for his gift. Many great holidays were also spent at barbeques at Grandma Roseboom's. This past June, Matt's cousin got married and when the songs began to play, he was the first on the dance floor and all the ladies stood in line to dance with him. He was just so cool - he wore sunglasses all the time. One of Matt's favorite activities was bowling and for the last few years he has spent his birthday bowling. In fact, his 15th birthday was a big party at the bowling alley. For several years, Matt attended Make- A- Wish Halloween parties and during the Christmas holiday, he went to The Festival of Trees and made sure to see Santa. Although Matt enjoyed all kinds of music, Christmas music was his all time favorite.

As a student, Matt was a 9th grader at Comstock High School, where he loved art, math and lunch hour, when he could see his brother Bobby. He was a bit of a social butterfly too and had many friends. A true gift to all, Matt knew without a doubt what life was all about - learning, laughing and helping other people do the same. He brought great love in his short life, a love his family and friends will cherish forever.

Matthew Rice, age 15 of Kalamazoo, MI, died at his home unexpectedly after a brief illness on December 14, 2005. Matt's family includes his parents, John & Diana Rice of Kalamazoo; brothers: John & Robert of Kalamazoo; grandmothers: Allaine Roseboom of Kalamazoo and Laquita Rice of Otsego; 3 aunts and 7 uncles, including a special Aunt Julie Parker; several cousins and his longtime nurse and friend, Bonnie Nye.

Learn more about Matt, visit with his family and view his Life Story Film on Sunday, December 18, from 4-7 p.m. at the RDMG Life Story Funeral Home, Portage Chapel, where his service will be held on Monday, December 19, at 2 p.m. Please visit Matt's memory page at www.lifestorynet.com where you may archive a favorite memory, order flowers or make a memorial contribution to the family towards funeral expenses.