Matthew Lee Dawson

Matthew Lee Dawson, 44, formerly of Washington, went to be with his Lord and Savior Thursday, March 18, 2021, in the home of his mother in Murrells Inlet, S.C. In the days before his death, he had been surrounded by the love of his family, his mother and stepfather, Gretchen and Richard Johns; his father, Matthew G. Dawson of Navarre, Fla.; brother Kenneth Dawson and sons Kyler and Kameron of Navarre; sister Sarah (Phillip) Kuemmel with daughter Ariel and son Bryce of Springfield, Va.; his sister, Natalie (Matthew) Wright of Navarre; and the light of his life, son Hayden Dawson, almost 14, of Washington.

He is also survived by his brother, David Dawson of Navarre; and his very dear friends, Tami and Dennis Stevens of Burgettstown, who were his second family. He also leaves behind many aunts and uncles, and numerous cousins.

Matthew fought a brave battle with Stage 4 colon cancer, and defeated it the first time. He was strong and fought valiantly with his second round, but the cancer advanced too rapidly.

Matthew was a hard worker and respected manager in his career in loan mitigation with Bank of America Home Loans. He also spent some time involved in real estate title work, but his favorite pastime was fishing the many rivers and streams of Western and Central Pennsylvania. The streams of Erie were a special place for him ... even in the snow. He loved fishing the Juniata at the family cabin in Central PA, and frequently fished the Youghiogheny. If he could have found a career in fishing, it would have been his dream job. He was also an avid follower of sports, especially basketball and baseball. Of course he was a Steelers fan and also a follower of Penn State sports. As a former resident of Kansas, he also followed Kansas Jayhawks basketball as well as K.U. He resided in Kansas for his junior high and senior high years, where his high school football team was the state champ. He could quote reams of information about all of the teams, and was known to place a bet or two on the outcomes of games. Those of you who knew him will be smiling at this.

Matthew earned many nicknames along life's way. He was known as Dee-Da, B-Fur, B-Matt, and Q-ness to those who loved him and cherished him. A fan of classic rock ... mostly '80s music ... he could tell you the lyrics, title and performers of each song.He also loved walking the trails of Western PA, the hills of Washington, and spent many miles walking the Murrells Inlet neighborhood when recuperating from his first bout with cancer. When living in Florida he took long walks in addition to biking many miles.

He was a very private, yet very caring person. He will be missed dearly by his family who loved him so much. We look forward to being together with him again in our eternal home with our Lord.

A memorial is planned for Saturday, May 22, in Washington.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the C.A.S.T. for Kids Foundation, enriching the lives of children with special needs through fishing or to the Catch-A-Dream Foundation that provides once-in-a-lifetime fishing and hunting experiences for children 18 or younger who have life threatening illness.

Cremation Services Direct of Myrtle Beach, S.C. (843-651-1194) will be assisting the family with arrangements.