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Matthew J. Taggart

Matthew Taggart Obituary

TAGGART
MATTHEW J., age 28, on Jan. 16, 2008, of Miami Beach FL., formerly of Drexel Hill PA. Beloved son of Mark G. and Anne M (nee Heinmann) Taggart; devoted brother of Andrew C. Taggart and Mariel E. Taggart; loving grandson of Charles E. Heinmann. Relatives and friends are invited to his Funeral Service Wednesday, 8 P.M., O'LEARY FUNERAL HOME, 640 E. Springfield Rd., Springfield, PA and to his Visitation Wednesday after 5 P.M. in the Funeral Home. Int. private. Contributions to National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) of PA, Delaware Co. Chapter, P.O. Box 567, Lansdowne PA 19050.

(Parking on Premises)

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Published by Philadelphia Inquirer/Philadelphia Daily News on Jan. 22, 2008.

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Mark G TAGGART

December 31, 2024

Grief never ends, but it changes. It is a passage, not a place to stay. Grief is not a sign of weakness nor a lack of faith. It is the price of love.

Author unknown

Dad

November 18, 2024

Happy Birthday, Matt. Always in our hearts and minds.

Dad

June 16, 2024

Grief cannot be shared. Everyone carries it alone; his own burden in his own way.

Anne Morrow Lindbergh

Aunt Helen

January 17, 2024

Missing you everyday. Seeing your smile, hearing your voice, watching you fix your heat for the 1000 time and getting a hug from you. A few of the MANY things I miss. Please watch over your family

Dad

January 16, 2024

The holiest of holidays are those kept by ourselves in silence and apart: The secret anniversaries of the heart.
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

Dad

November 18, 2023

Happy Birthday, Matt.

Dad

June 18, 2023

Where there is sorrow, there is holy ground.

Oscar Wilde

Emily

January 16, 2023

I miss you.

January 16, 2023

What we once enjoyed and deeply loved we can never lose, for all that we love deeply becomes part of us.

Helen Keller

Mark Gerard TAGGART

November 18, 2022

Happy Birthday, Matt.

Dad

June 19, 2022

When the young bury the old, time heals the pain and sorrow. But when the process is reversed, the sorrow remains forever.

Joseph P. Kennedy

Emily

January 17, 2022

I miss you. How can it already be so long?

Dad

January 16, 2022

The Greek playwright, Aeschylus, wrote, "Even in our sleep, pain which cannot forget falls drop by drop upon the heart until, in our own despair, against our will, comes wisdom through the awful grace of God."

Dad

November 18, 2021

Shel Silverstein wrote, "There are no happy endings, Endings are the hardest part. Just give me a happy middle, and a very happy start." I can remember how happy and proud you were when you bought "Where the Sidewalk Ends"; it was the first book you purchased, all by yourself. I still look at it, from time to time, and think of you. Happy Birthday, Matt.

Dad

June 20, 2021

There is an old Hebrew proverb that reads, " Say not in grief 'he is no more' but in thankfulness that he was".

Dad

January 16, 2021

Gandhi said, "There are no goodbyes for us. Wherever you are, you will always be in my heart."

Mark TAGGART

November 18, 2020

Happy Birthday, Matt.

July 19, 2020

Thinking of you today. ❤

Dad

June 21, 2020

Today I am reminded of the biblical verse that reads, " I am with you always, even to the end of the age."

Helen Heinemann

January 16, 2020

12 years seems like 200! Words fail me, tears fill my eyes, and my heart still yearns to hug you and see your beautiful smile! The consolation that holds me together is that you are free from any pain! I hope and pray you are watching over us with Mabe by your side!
Aunt Helen

January 16, 2020

C.S. Lewis wrote" For in grief nothing "stays put." One keeps on emerging from a phase, but it always recurs. Round and round. Everything repeats. Am I going in circles, or dare I hope I am on a spiral? But if a spiral, am I going up or down it? How often--will it be for always--how often will the vast emptiness astonish me like a complete novelty and make me say, " I never realized my loss till this moment"? The same leg is cut off time after time.

Emily

January 15, 2020

I miss you Ubieman. Always.

November 18, 2019

Matt, today you turn forty. I wonder what your life would be like. Would you have accomplished all that you wanted to? Would you be married, have children, have a career that meant something to you? Would you have aged gracefully, like your mother? Would you have answered all the questions that still prompt me to" think I'll call Matt about that"? We'll never know. All I know is that I love you and miss you. Happy birthday, Matt.

June 16, 2019

J.M. Barrie wrote, " God gave us memory so that
we might have roses in December." Matt, I treasure my memories of you.

Dad

January 16, 2019

Washington Irving wrote, " There is a sacredness in tears. They are not the mark of weakness, but of power. They speak more eloquently than ten thousand tongues. They are the messengers of grief, of deep contrition, and of unspeakable love."

November 18, 2018

Happy birthday, son. We miss you.

June 17, 2018

The ancient Greek playwright, Aeschylus, wrote, "There is no pain so great as the memory of joy in present grief."

January 23, 2018

You were more like a little brother than a nephew. Recently your younger years are more prevalent. I was soo proud to be your Aunt and pseudo big sister. We did so much together when you were a toddler. From watching cartoons to having you ride the old style horse on a metal frame and springs, back and forth, back and forth!!! Your hair was wild and crazy and beautiful. Your smile brightened rooms and was infectious! I hope you and Mabe are keeping company and watching over all of us!
I Love You
Aunt Helen

January 22, 2018

Thank you to the anonymous sponsor from the Taggart family.

Emily Moore

January 20, 2018

I cannot believe it's been 10 years. I think of you often, especially when I use one of your favorite words (penultimate, uber, etc.). Keep rocking it upstairs.

Marian Beauchamp

January 16, 2018

The family isn't whole without you and Luke. We miss you!

January 16, 2018

Today marks the tenth anniversary of your passing. It calls to mind a poem, written by the twelfth century poet and philosopher Yehuda HaLevi. It is titled " 'Tis a fearful thing."

'Tis a fearful thing
to love what death can touch
A fearful thing
to love, to hope, to dream, to be-
to be
And oh, to lose
A thing for fools, this,
And a holy thing,
a holy thing to love.
For your life has lived in me,
your laugh once lifted me,
your word was gift to me.
To remember this brings painful joy.
'Tis a human thing, love,
a holy thing to love
what death has touched.

November 18, 2017

Thirty eight years ago, on a cloudy yet mild day similar to today, you came in to our lives. Happy Birthday, Matt. I miss you, and I love you.

June 18, 2017

I miss you, and I love you.

January 16, 2017

Think of you often, more so today.
We all have different memories of you, but they all make us smile. I am reminded today of the shy little boy who didn't like the feel of sand on his feet at the beach. You grew into a handsome, smiling man who sat at the edge of the bay with his bare feet in the water...smiling a big smile.
xoxoxo
Marian

Dad

January 16, 2017

I am reminded of a quote by Rose Kennedy that reads, "It has been said that time heals all wounds. I do not agree. The wounds remain. In time, the mind protecting it's sanity covers them with scar tissue and the pain lessens, but it's never gone."

Dad

November 18, 2016

Happy 37th birthday, Matt. I miss you, and I love you.

June 19, 2016

Matt, thinking of you today reminds me of a quote that I first came upon when you were a baby. It reads, " Sometimes the smallest things take up the most room in your heart."

January 19, 2016

Matt,

There have been a ton of times over the past 8 years where something new has happened and I wonder what your take on it would have been.

Miss ya buddy,
Rob

Dad

January 16, 2016

It has been written, "We understand death for the first time when he puts his hand upon one whom we love." The passage of time does not diminish the feeling in my heart.

November 18, 2015

Happy thirty sixth birthday, Matt. I miss you, and I love you.

Dad

Dad

June 21, 2015

Matt, you outgrew my lap, but never my heart. I miss you, and I love you.

DAD

January 16, 2015

The poet Edna St. Vincent Millay wrote, "Where you used to be, there is a hole in the world, which I find myself constantly walking around in the daytime, and falling in at night." Seven years, and yet, sometimes, it feels like yesterday.

Dad

November 18, 2014

Happy thirty fifth birthday, Matt. I miss you, and I love you.

dad

June 15, 2014

Matt, when you were a toddler you would run and jump into my arms. It calls to mind the old saying that 'A truly rich man is one whose children run into his arms when his hands are empty". I miss you, and I love you.

Dad

January 18, 2014

Shakespeare wrote, "Give sorrow words; the grief that does not speak knits up the overwrought heart and bids it break." Six years have passed, and yet the reminders still come, from places both suspected and surprising. The ties that bind run deep, Matt. I miss you, and I love you.

Dad

November 18, 2013

Happy thirty fourth birthday, Matt. I miss you, and I love you.

chris morrison

July 16, 2013

Matt I wish I could have spoken to you more. We had more in common than i thought.I know you were a genuine person and blessed a lot of people in your all too brief time here. To your family: stay strong and never forget the good times. Matt was a reflection of a good loving family with great values. My heart goes out to you.

June 16, 2013

I miss you, and I love you.

Christine Lovell-Smith

January 16, 2013

I just heard about Matt's passing yesterday and although it's been years, I am so terribly sorry for your loss.

We went to school together at St. Andrew's.
After 8th grade, I moved and lost touch with just about all of my classmates.

Matt was a great person and will be missed.

Shawn Quinn

January 16, 2013

It's been a long and exciting 5 years, Matt. Would have been a lot better had you been along for the ride. Rest in peace. Thinking of you and your family today.

January 16, 2013

Five years have passed, and yet not a day goes by without you in my thoughts. Cicero said," The life of the dead is placed in the memory of the living." I miss you and I love you.

Dad

November 18, 2012

Happy birthday, Matt. I miss you and I love you.

Dad

June 16, 2012

A quote reads, "It is not flesh and blood. but heart that makes us father and son." I miss you, and I love you.

Dad

Katie Unger

January 18, 2012

Matt was my best friend Lisa's boyfriend, and I have numerous happy memories of double dates my husband Trevor and I shared with them.
Matt was interested in a job in the mental health field, and I helped Matt get a job as a Case Manager at the mental health agency that I am a Case Manager for.

After he left us, I gathered his items out his office. He had left a list of "questions to ask olive" (my nickname is olive oyl) on his desk, that included at least 20 questions he was going to ask me about how to complete documentation, how to submit billing, and how to follow up on his assigned clients.

He was a natural at the job! While I was training him, he met several of my clients, who always speak of Matt's kind nature.
- Katie Unger

January 17, 2012

This time of year always brings me back to that sad day four years ago, thinking of the whole Taggart family and especially Matt.

Katie Unger

January 16, 2012

"If one does not keep pace with his companions, perhaps it is because they hear the beat of a different drummer; Let them step to the music they hear, however unmeasured or far away."
-Henry David Thoreau

This is being posted as a dedication to Matt. I do not submit this as my own writing, and I do not own any rights to this quote, this quote is not an attempt to infringe on any copyright.

January 16, 2012

There is an ancient quote that states, "Death leaves a heartache no one can heal. Love leaves a memory no one can steal." It was as true then as it is now. I miss you and I love you.

Dad

Emily Moore

January 16, 2012

Thinking of you today.

November 18, 2011

Happy birthday, Matt. I miss you and I love you.
Dad

Chuck Dunlap

July 29, 2011

I know this is a few years late, but I just wanted to say I'm so sorry to hear about Matt's passing. Although my friendship with Matt was mainly in high school, I thought about him often in the years since then, and always considered him a very special friend. Although I lost touch with him, and I regret doing so, I have many fond and funny memories of Matt that have stayed with me through the years. I can still hear Coach Fisher barking "Come on Tag", on the hills of Rose Tree Park and Naylor's Run. Miss you, pal.

Dad

June 19, 2011

When you are sorrowful look again in your heart, and you shall see that in truth you are weeping for that which has been your delight.

M. Gouda

January 17, 2011

Remember me when I am gone away, Gone far away into the silent land; When you can no more hold me by the hand, Nor I half turn to go yet turning stay. Remember me when no more day by day, You tell me of our future that you planned: Only remember me; you understand. It will be late to counsel then or pray. Yet if you should forget me for a while And afterwards remember, do not grieve; For if the darkness and corruption leave A vestige of the thoughts that once I had, Better by far you should forget and smile Than that you should remember and be sad.

Matt you will never be forgotten. God bless the Taggart Family.

January 16, 2011

Words were your favorite thing however there are no words that can describe the missing piece left in the family!
Aunt Helen

Emily Moore

January 16, 2011

Miss you my friend.

January 16, 2011

Did you know I look for you
Everywhere I go?
Sometimes I think I see you
I thought that you should know

Did you know I talk to you
Whenever I'm in a bind?
It always makes things better
I didn't think you'd mind

Did you know I think of you
And long to hear your voice?
A movie, a book, a song
It could be your choice

Did you know I cry for you
Each and every day?
Will we meet again?
It's up to you to say

Emily

November 19, 2010

Yesterday, as I got into my car after a crazy day of teaching middle schoolers, I turned it on and what song was playing.. Beyond the Sea. I remember you dragging me to that movie! :) I'm thinking you were enjoying that song as a birthday treat!

Griff

November 18, 2010

I was sitting at a light on the way home from work today when I noticed the license plate in front of me: GPM. Of all days for me to see this license plate. I even took a shoddy cell phone picture. GPM is the moniker Matt gave to our friend Shawn Quinn. The "P" stands for pedantic, a fancy Matt word for know-it-all. I'll leave what the other two letters stand for to your imagination, but they were both popular words in Matt's vocabulary. I don't believe in fate but what a cool coincidence for me to see "GPM" on Matt's birthday! Happy birthday buddy.

November 18, 2010

Someone once said, "Children are the hands by which we take hold of heaven." It was true the day you were born, and it is true now. Happy birthday, son. I miss you and I love you, Dad.

Rachel Hieb

July 21, 2010

I just heard about Matt. I know I am a couple years late and I am sorry. I went to St Andrews with Matt when we were kids. We were friends! I am so sorry to hear about your lost. I really liked Matt and I always remember us as children. May peace be with your family. You will always be in my heart Matt!

Rachel Hieb
Formerly Of Drexel Hill, PA
Current Lancaster, Pa

June 20, 2010

For pleasures past I do not grieve, nor perils gathering near; My greatest grief is that I leave nothing that claims a tear. Matt, I miss you and I love you.

Dad

mariel's graduation party, June 2007

January 27, 2010

matt and mom at Penn State, 1999

January 27, 2010

dewey beach, 1993

January 27, 2010

Christmas, 1979

January 27, 2010

January 22, 2010

Thank you to the anonymous sponsor.

The Taggart family

Emily Moore

January 17, 2010

Yesterday you left this world. Tomorrow is the day Rob gave me the news of your death. It seems so long ago, yet so near. Thinking of you, missing you, and cherishing all I have in memories.

I love you and find reference to you every day. Just a quick example, my 8th graders are learning about angles, one of which is obtuse.... just that word brought back great stories told by your family and great debates we had back in the day!

May you be doing what you love upstairs....

January 16, 2010

I miss you, and I love you.

January 16, 2010

Miss you more this past year than ever. Today is the anniversary of your death, for all of us left behind immense sorrow. For you relief and for Mabe, a huge hug. Love You! Aunt Helen

Bizkette

November 19, 2009

Happy Birthday Ubie Man! Sorry I'm a day late! I finally got a teaching gig and man, have I been busy! I hope you are rocking out to Dream Theater up above! :)

November 19, 2009

Always close to my heart.

Griff

November 18, 2009

Happy bday, Tag. Miss you, buddy.

November 18, 2009

Today would be Matt's thirtieth birthday. It is a day of relection, and of sorrow, and you can't seem to have one without the other. I don't want to lose the Matt that I knew; I want to share with others who he was, and what he meant to me. I thought that I would just relate a few anecdotes to see if I could accomplish this. After all, someone I know very well once described him as "cheap, vulgar, and amazing".

It was Matt's uncle's fortieth birthday party. Matt was helping out, running errands, picking things up; whatever was needed. He was using his aunt's car to do this. When his grandfather arrived, he heard that Matt was doing a lot of driving, so he offered him gas money. Matt took it. And kept it. At the end of the night, as we were leaving, I asked Matt if I could use his car to drive Mariel and her friends home. They had been servers at the party, and I couldn't fit all of them in my car. I told him that he could drive my car home. "Sure", he said "How about money for gas?"

Matt was six years old. My parents were over, and, after watching a little baseball with my father, Matt had gone outside to play. I'm looking out the window, watching, when a man walks up to our fence and asks Matt a question. It was a brief exchange; the man walked away, and I went outside to ask what had happened. Matt said the man asked him for directions. "What did you say, Matt?" I asked. "I called him an a-----e", said my little angel of a man. I turned my head, to stifle a smile, and was about to correct him, when I realized that he had been sitting with my father. Most likely, one of the Phillies had struck out, probably on something low and outside, and my father's usual reaction was to call that player an a-----e. I think that was the first profanity Matt ever uttered. It wouldn't be the last.

We were driving on the Pacific Coast Highway. Anne, my brother David, and his wife, Cheryl, were in the car with me. It was April 19, 2004. The phone rang, and when I answered, it was Matt. He had called to ask me how I was feeling. He knew it was the one year anniversary of my mother's passing, and he just wanted to know how I was.

It was August 28, 2004. I was delivering mail when a red station wagon came flying up to the Drexeline parking lot. Matt jumped out, and gave me a hug. My father had just died, and he was there, consoling me.

As I type these last few lines, the tears are streaming down my face. Cheap, vulgar,and amazing. Matt, you were all of these. And so much more. I miss you, and I love you. Happy birthday, son.

Emily Moore

October 10, 2009

Thinking of you today.... as I do everyday, yet today moreso than other days. Hope you're taking care upstairs.

June 21, 2009

I love you and miss you, Matt. You made a twenty one year boy a man when you were born. You showed me what's important in life. Thank you for everything that you gave to me.

Dad

April 16, 2009

Sometimes certain songs trigger certain memories of Matt. The other day I heard "Escape, The Pina Colada Song" and could not help but smile. When Matt began exploring new types of music he loved this song "If you like Pina Colada's and getting caught in the rain!"
Miss you everyday Matt!

Emily Moore

February 7, 2009

Hey UbieMan. I heard Outkast on the radio and thought of your lovely rendition of Hey Ya! It could not have come at a better time...

Dad

January 16, 2009

Matt, when you were a baby, there was a song out by John Lennon called "Beautiful Boy". I still think of you when I hear it. It brings back so many memories, and those memories sustain me through these trying days. We are the keepers of our own souls, and I realize that some things just can't be overcome. But, Matt, I just want to thank you for everything that you gave me. You made me a better person, a better father, and a better husband. You made me a better man, and I will always be grateful to you. I love you , Matt.

Marian

December 27, 2008

In the middle of waking this morning, I saw Matt sitting in the lounge chair on the beach. He had his tie dye shirt on and a smile. There was so much peace all around him. It was in the present and he looked so happy. I'm not sure why this came today, a cold winter day. But I think Matt just wants us to know he is smiling on us, smiling at us too (God knows we do enough silly things). He is happy and its all gooooood.

December 21, 2008

I just moved two weeks ago and during my unpacking I came across a picture. One of Matt in his teens in between my mother and myself in our Havertown kitchen. Mabe was cuddled up cheek to cheek with you :) The timing was perfect and the moment Priceless!! Thanks for the sign Matt, give Mabe hugs for me. I love you and miss you deeply. Love Aunt Helen

Emily

December 20, 2008

Hey Ubie.... I wanted to stop by and let you know that I had Jessica bring a yellow rose and a cross to your grave for me. We've been getting loads of snow and I probably will not get down there until Spring. I'm hoping to do the 5K instead of the walk. Today I figured out what you were trying to tell me with the "9s". I also figured out where the flowers came from. Hope you are rockin' it upstairs. If you see my cousin Mikey, my grandpa and my uncles, tell them I miss them.

Love always.

Anne Taggart

November 19, 2008

I want to acknowledge all those who posted messages on Matt's B-Day.
Our family is truly blessed with wonderful friends & especially Matt's friends who continue to support his memory. We visited the cemetary yesterday & sang Happy Birthday to Matt & released 18 balloons into the sky. However, they didn't make it very far because of the blowing wind & flurries. About 10 balloons became entangled in a nearby tree prompting a much needed laugh! I bet Matt was watching (in spirit) & had a good laugh. There was a card left by some of Matt's friends alongside the headstone. We opened it & again had a good laugh (thanks guys). We placed the card in a "memory box" so we can laugh & remember all the good things about Matt & focus on the positive.
Any more thoughts about Matt, feel free to contact us. We'll continue to keep the "Guest Book" as long as we can.
Sincerely, The Taggarts

Griff

November 18, 2008

One of the last really good conversations I had with Matt was just over a year ago. I hadn't talked to him in a while, so I decided to call him to see how things were going and to tell him I had an awesome birthday card to send him.

And we had a great talk. I joked about how it must be boring to stare at boring stupid green palm trees all day and to have the same boring warm weather everyday when he could be looking at red or orange leaves and dealing with the wonderful ups and downs of PA weather. And he laughed and laughed.

Matt laughed at all my jokes, no matter how bad. He could really make me feel like a million bucks sometimes.

We had a good long talk, which is saying something for me, since I'm not the most talkative person. But I had an easier time talking to Matt than anybody else. We just rolled with each other's punches.

And at the end of the conversation, Matt actually thanked me for calling. He said it was unexpected, and it really cheered him up. Now, Matt wasn't one to readily hand out complements, so that thanks means an awful, awful lot to me now.

Happy birthday, Tag. Thanks for always making me laugh.

Betsy Alloway

November 18, 2008

I'm thinking of all of you today on Matt's birthday. I hope that in some small way it helps to know that there are many thoughts and prayers with your family not just today but everyday.

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