Matthew Silveira Cabral Cabral

CABRAL, Matthew Silveira Cabral, 13, of Manakin Sabot, Va., passed away on December 18, 2020. He was born on December 16, 2007, in Rochester, N.Y. Matthew is survived by his parents, Luis Henrique Botelho Cabral and Juliane Silveira Cabral; and one brother, Alexander Silveira Cabral.

To our sweet baby boy!

We know these words are not enough to describe how amazing you are. We are in awe of your spirit and your sense of adventure. Your love of travel led us to explore amazing destinations around the world. Your relentless pursuit of fun that you shared with so many friends. Your intense giggles that lit up a room. Your strong personality that never wavered from what you believed in. Your love of animals, the amount of information you held in your brain that helped us decide which varieties of chickens to raise, which also drove the need to build the "Chicken Mansion." Your love and care for all animals was so great and especially for your dog, Ruby. Your compassion towards others, your love of chocolate was insatiable, we are still finding candy wrappers. We will never forget your love of food and willingness to try something new. We loved to try new restaurants and were always ready to give our nod of approval as the waiters looked at us after your ordered. I'll have my steak black and blue, with the garlic butter sauce, please. Let's not forget your love of sports! You were great at every sport you were involved in from first place at a karate competition at five years old, highest scorer on your Lacrosse team, flag football and T-Ball in Rochester, N.Y. When we moved to Goochland, you quickly made so many great friends in baseball, which became such a huge part of our lives. Your lightning-fast speed stealing those bases, it was so cool listening to everyone cheering you on, you made watching the game exciting! As a catcher, you pulled off so many jump up in the air catches that always gave your team the advantage. As coach Boyle moved next door to us, it made picking up soccer so easy for us, we didn't even need to drive you to practice! As it turned out you were great at soccer too. We loved watching your lightning-fast speed help you go from one side of the field to the other with what seemed like an endless supply of energy. When you were the goalie, you didn't hold back either and were often jumping into the air to block some crazy goals. Of course your team always looked for you to throw in the ball or kick it back into play, just like a miniature Cristiano Ronaldo.

You are an amazing son, brother, grandson, nephew, cousin and friend. Although your life with us here was way too short, you have inspired us to go on and do great things in your name. You are "our son" and your light will keep on shining! Wrapping you up with the tightest of hugs, until we see you again, we love you so much and miss you terribly.

In lieu of flowers, please donate to the Matthew "Smiles" Cabral Foundation by electronic deposit, or checks can be mailed to the bank address below: Atlantic Union Bank, 9605 Gayton Road, Richmond, Va. 23238, Matthew "Smiles" Cabral Foundation, Account# 8527333041, Routing# 051403164.

A visitation will be held from 4 to 6 p.m. on Sunday, December 27, 2020, at Norman Funeral Chapel, 2982 River Road West, Goochland, Va. 23063. A funeral will be held at 1 p.m. on Monday, December 28, 2020, at Norman Funeral Chapel with interment to follow in Greenwood Memorial Gardens. The funeral will be livestreamed on YouTube, https://youtu.be/kdhIvSvufSU.