In Memoriam: Matt M.

He came in and checked his email, grinning at us because the weather was nice and he was going out for a scientific dive. It was gorgeous clear, crisp autumn day and he was passionate about diving. I watched him pull on his dry suit in the back parking lot from my office window smiling at his energy his exuberance. Then at noon the call came from his dive partner that he'd gone missing. Work at the office came almost to a complete stop as we monitored the airwaves to listen to the coast guard and the fire department. It didn't sound good. They performed CPR on him all the way back to the harbor and to the hospital. Sometime around 2:30pm he was pronounced dead. Shortly there after I attended the quietest all staff meeting I have ever attended.

Matt was a colleague of mine. He was one of those people who are always infectiously cheerful and full of good humor. He'd just finished his PhD and we had been chatting about his two young boys and whether or not he had plans for his birthday on Thursday. It's hard to believe he's gone and at the same time it's more real than anything else today. Everyone is rather quiet and subdued today. We're all thinking of Matt and of his family. We're all remembering his laughter.