My prayers, thoughts, and heart go out the Crowders during this time. I was shocked and saddened to hear about the loss of Matt, as I have many fond memories of him. He was always a friend and a joy to know. I will always remember Matt.
-Liz Hentges (Wilson), (Houston, TX)Matt, I am going to miss you very much! I cant tell you how much you meant to your friends and everyone else in your life we will miss you. Thank you to the Crowders for bringing matt into everyones lifes!!!
-Ryan Schultz (Olathe, KS)
Sorry I have just now been able to sit down and write something. I didn't find out until Saturday night that this had happened. I never had the pleasure of meeting Matt but I do know his wife from Dr. Crowders office. Dr. Crowder has treated 3 of my children. He is a wonderful and kind person so I can just imagine what kind of wonderful person Matt was as well. Laura is always a delight to see when we come in for appointments. She always has a beautiful smile on her face and is so friendly. You are all in our thoughts and prayers.
-John and Lori Feikert and the Feikert Family, Maile, Paige, Brooke, and Larkin
I knew Matt briefly as a Realtor W/JP Wiegand in Andover. The last time I spoke with him was when he was waiting to find out the sex of his new baby. His smile lit up the room!
Thank You, God, for blessing this family with a wonderful little blessing before his Daddy's passing. Matt was so young but left so much.... be strong Crowder family, you are in all of our prayers.
-Joanne Coleman
Matt was one of the toughest competitors that i have had the privelege to play against. He was the only one who could make pickup family basketball seem like the final four. Sure he always talked alot of trash but he justified every word of it with the effort he put out. It never ceased to amaze me how he could keep up with us younger guys by sheer indomitable determination. I'm gonna miss him and i can't wait to enjoy the peace he now has from not having to compete anymore.
-Aaron Scott
I only got to know Matt, four years ago when he came into my niece Laura's life. I was given the gift of spending a vacation week with him and Laura at Myrtle Beach. I knew immediatly that Matt was going to fit in fine with our crazy family. He jumped right in one night, when two of the uncles decided to have a 2 hour argument over weather or not we really went to the moon. Matt was brand new to this family, but he was front and center in the debate. I feel sad that I am now not going to be able to get to know Matt better. I do know that for the rest of my life, every time I look at our Griffin, I will be seeing Matt. He is his father's son. I attended the funeral and listened to all of his friends tell wild stories about Matts love for life, and I kept thinking about one of my favorite quotes written by Abraham Lincoln. "And in the end it's not the years in your life that count. It's the life in your years."
I love you Laura.
-Fran Pitotti (Winchester, VA)
I'm sorry to say I never knew Matt (I knew Ric and Adam at MD camp), but I wanted to express my sympathy to your family. May he be at peace.
-Dawn M. Allenbach (Inman, KS)
We worked with Matt at the Andover office of JP Weigand. When Matt and Laura first started in the real estate business his brash, somewhat over confident attitude took many of us by surprise. It wasn't long before many of the other agents were a little weary of his tendancy to voice a strong opinion on just about any topic. It didn't seem to matter to Matt that often is opinion was not widely accepted as informed. One day, after being chastised by Matt about my near addiction to a diet soft drink, I mentioned to him, privately that he was alienating many of us in the office with his "know-it-all" attitude. He seemed to reflect on this and slowly, over a period of time we began to see a change in Matt. Over the last year or so Matt had matured and the change was remarkable. He became someone who we all looked forward to seeing and spending time with. Whether it was just a quick talk about the KU basketball team or sitting next to him at the poker table, Matt's exuberance and true love of life was manifested in all he did. About 6 months ago I told Matt that after a rocky start in our office, he was becoming a well liked and respected friend. He thanked me for saying that. The last time I was with Matt was at a recent birthday bash for a friend. I played poker with Matt. After having him, good naturedly point out some of my mis-played hands, I was able to get Matt to bid into my hand, which ended up being four threes. Matt went "all in" and he lost. After several minutes of him telling me and the rest of the table that it was impossible for me to have won, he stood up, smiled, shook my hand and said, "you suck!" Matt, from one "know it all" to another, I am deeply saddened by your leaving us and our prayers are with Laura, Griffin, and your family.
-Pam & Bruce Peterson
