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Matthew Hansen Obituary

HASLETT -- Matthew James Hansen, 33, died in his home in Haslett on Sept. 11, 2020, after a devastating cancer diagnosis two months earlier.

Matt graduated from Big Rapids High School in 2004, and went on to study music at Eastern Michigan University. He did post-graduate studies at the University of Tennessee and Michigan State University, earning his Doctor of Musical Arts in music performance on the French horn.

He was an active musician performing as part of several symphonies across Michigan including those in Traverse City, west Michigan, Jackson, Lansing, and Ann Arbor.

He married his beloved wife, Elyse (Earnest), in 2012, and together they brought their beautiful son, Elliot, into the world in 2014. This spring, they discovered they were expecting identical twin boys.

Matt's legacy will live on in Elyse, Elliot, and their unborn sons. Together with his family, Matt settled in Haslett in 2018, where he worked for MSU and devoted each day to filling their lives with love and laughter.

He is and will continue to be dearly missed by his wife and children; his parents, Warren and Charlene (Stratz) Hansen; his brother, Eric Hansen (Anne); sisters, Theresa Hansen, Alyssa Sturdavant (Chad), Rebecca Olin (Ben); his parents-in-law, Randolph and Sherry (Dawson) Earnest; brother-in-law, Ethan Earnest (Amanda); sister-in-law, Emily; and many nieces, nephews, extended family members, and friends.

Immediate family members will celebrate his life with a small, private service and plan a larger public gathering in his memory next summer.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made directly to his wife and children to support them as they navigate their life moving forward.

To plant trees in memory, please visit the Sympathy Store.

Published by Big Rapids Pioneer on Sep. 18, 2020.

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Rise' L Alexander

October 4, 2020

Very open, friendly , energetic gentleman. Lovely neighbors. so sorry we did not know Matt earlier especially with his music.
We did not realize how quickly he had passed. We continue to pray for and offer any help we can for Elyse , Elliott and the new babies when they make their appearance.

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