Matthew Edward Lukasiewicz

Born December 30, 1975

Died December 15, 2016

Beloved son of Eddie and Maxine Lukasiewicz. Godfather to Jewell Elizabeth Mason, Sophia Jeanette Mason, Ireland Lily Mason, and Graham Christopher Scott Mason. Loved as a brother by Scott Leonard Mason.  Friend to more than he ever knew.  A man who touched so many lives and never asked for recognition, thanks, or praise.  Lifetime member of St. Francis Church in Detroit, Michigan.  Closet beer maker.  Unlicensed history mastermind.  Excessive reader. Occasional pain in the butt.  Teller of off color jokes.  Sword fighter. If the last name doesn't clue you in, POLISH! General all around wonderful person, friend, family member, godfather, uncle, and son.  You will be missed forever Matthew and always in our hearts.








This is a copy of the eulogy that was given at Matt's church mass.

I asked my husband a few days after Matt passed away if he was going to do a eulogy for him.  He at first told me he didn't think he could but after some consideration and me telling him that if he wanted to write something I would read it, he changed his mind.  The fact that he knew he couldn't do it and asked for help speaks volumes about the man Matt was and the kind of pain his sudden passing caused.  However, I know he is in a better place right now, with his mom Maxine and his dad Eddie walking along a tropical beach maybe, probably followed by all the dogs he raised and cared for.

When I got married I got a great group of in-laws but I also got Matt who because my second brother-in-law.  You see my husband has always considered Matt his brother for all the years I have known him.  He celebrated with him and mourned with him.  He has crazy stories with him and grand adventures and in the almost 30 years of friendship they had together I am so lucky that I got to be a part of that, I got to be part of a family with Matt.  He is the godfather to all my children, the best friend my husband could have had at so many points in his life, and one of the best people I know.  You were instantly his friend and that is such a special thing, it is a gift from God that someone could make you feel like that and I know that Matt did that for many of us.

So this is what my husband wrote about his friend and their years together;

I would like to take this time and thank everyone body for all the love and support you have shown during this difficult time for everyone.  It means the world to me and warms my heart to see the effect Matt had on all our lives.  I know he loved and treasured each and every person here today and he would not want us to mourn for him but to celebrate his life by sharing the memories and stories that are so much a part of our lives with Matt.

I wish I had the words to honor the man who meant so much to all of us here today.  The man I met 28 years ago and would become my best friend, brother, and godfather to all four of my kids.  As I look back on a million memories with Matt I realize that he was at every major event in my life and I also got to be at most of his.  In our youth we were at Fordson High School together, we graduated together.  Later he would visit me in college in Maryland and even later still he would stand up in my wedding, be at the birth of all four of my children.  Anything big that happened in my life he was there for and he was normally the first person in the door.  He was always the most supportive person in the room, but that was just how he was, if he cared about you he had your back through anything and there were no questions asked.  Well, maybe a couple of questions after the fact, like what were you thinking or how is this even possible, but even then he was always there.

Twenty years ago I suffered a tragic loss that would have broken me without the love and support from family and friends, especially Matt.  I wouldn't have made it through my pain and grief without him.  During this time he taught me the true meaning of friendship and he went from being my friend to my brother.  He took me to Chicago as a way to work through my pain, we were both just 21 and I will take those memories with me everywhere because I was sworn to secrecy about the events of that trip.  It seems like he and I had a lot of those kind of nights.

I remember clearly that he came to see me and my wife the day my first daughter was born and that was when I asked him to be my daughter's godfather, it was the happiest I had ever seen him. This led him to start spoiling all my children and he was one of the first people at the hospital for all their births.  When my daughter Ireland was born the nurse came and told me and my wife that we had a visitor and we were both shocked to see him there.  My daughter was born only two days after Matt's mother Maxine had passed away and we couldn't believe that he was there.  He spent a long time just sitting and holding her while she slept and I think it was good for all of us and it really meant the world to me and it says a lot about who he was as a friend and just the kind of man he was.   He would light up just being around my kids and they had him wrapped around their fingers.  He became their Uncle Monkey because the first two years of my oldest daughter's life he brought her some silly stuffed monkey or monkey pajamas or something every time he came over, so our daughter Jewell started calling him Uncle Monkey when she was about two and it stuck!  My oldest especially he had a real bond with; they were both Lord of the Ringer lovers, Harry Potter fans, and history geeks.  He would steal all the kids' noses and they would always check to make sure they were there still.  He would always pick them up when he hugged him and swing them around in a big circle.  It was fun to see all the pictures of Matt dressed in his full battle gear because I have also seen him eating pretend cookies and drinking pretend tea our of tiny princess cups and plates while wearing a crown and a feather boa, he truly was the best Uncle Monkey my kids could have asked for, he made sure they knew every time that they saw him that to him they were the center of his world.

The thing I think I will miss the most is the little stuff that I took for granted while he was still here with us.  Like the unique way he had of telling a story, all the texts back and forth while we both worked the midnight shift, the bad jokes, the early morning breakfast we shared, and the time I got to spend with my brother.  I didn't think I would but it is strange to me after moving countless things, apartments, and houses that we will never move anyone else again. I think about our teenage years at the Henry Ford Estate in the dish room and all the conversations we had.   All the crazy stories of us going out during our twenties that I just can't elaborate which turned into just going to grab a beer and talk in our thirties.  I still look at my phone every time it goes off just expecting it to be him. It was hard not getting a midnight text from him this New Year.  Sitting here just writing this for my wife to read is one of the hardest things I have ever had to be because really words can't describe the bond we had and we will always have because that doesn't end just because we don't see each other anymore.  I know we will see each other again.

But if I could see him right now I would tell him thank you, for teaching me what being a true friend is and how to love unconditionally. I always have said and will forever more that you were a way better person and friend than I was and I thank God that he blessed my life with you.  Thank you Matt for all the years and the millions of memories we made together.  I love you brother, rest in peace.