Matthew John Choinski

Matthew “Matt” John Choinski, 35 of San Marcos, CA passed away while canyoneering in Sequoia National Park on July 11, 2021. Matt was persistent in his belief that he could save the world, even in a small way. He found his way through engineering for which he received a Master’s degree at UC Riverside. He found his greatest purpose in helping others. He had an incredible talent for making everyone feel special and accepted, but at the same time he was driven towards excellence and he could really bring out the best in people. Although he would crack jokes to try and make us think otherwise, Matt was so devoted to his family. He often called his mom, Peg, for advice. He was very supportive of her decision to go back to college and often asked her about her work. He talked out countless problems from career choices to coffee making with his father, Bill, and took him rock climbing in Yosemite. Matt always made time to be with his siblings, joking and telling the greatest stories around a bonfire. He opened his life to his partner, Teresa, with whom he shared countless adventures, the greatest of which was love. Matt had a way with humor. He had this keen almost magical sense of people and was able to meet them on their level. He would joke and play right up until it was almost too much and would somehow make you know that he liked you, cared for you, saw you. And it was near impossible to keep from laughing once he started laughing. Matt found himself in the outdoors. He had a childlike awe for the natural world which radiated from him. He loved to tell others about his favorite places outside. Even more, he loved to bring others to his favorite places outside. He loved the journey and all of the challenges that came along. He taught us all many skills, and safety and imparted knowledge, but the real lessons he taught us were how to be kind, encouraging, dependable, ethical, and serious when the moment called for it but fun all of the other times. His memory and spark will live on in his parents; the love of his life: Teresa; his dog: Eli; his siblings: Tina, Danielle, Bill, and Carolynn; in-laws: Alyssa and Dustin; nephews: Alex and Logan and niece: Vera. He will be sorely missed. A Funeral Mass will be on Saturday, July 24th at 10 AM at Most Blessed Sacrament Catholic Church, 610 Pine Street, Bally, PA 19503. Friends may visit from 9 to 9:45 AM at the church. Interment will be at St. Peter & Paul Cemetery, 1600 S. Sproul Road, Springfield, PA 19064. The Falk Funeral Homes & Crematory, Pennsburg has been entrusted with arrangements. Due to COVID considerations, please wear a mask and practice social distancing. There will be no luncheon following the interment, however, all are welcome to join us for a celebration of life picnic September 11, 2021, from 1PM- 5PM, at New Hanover Lutheran Picnic Grove, on Swamp Picnic Rd, Gilbertsville, PA 19525. Please note that due to the storms the original location has been changed. *Stories and memories will be shared starting at 3PM* Please bring your own chair and carpool when possible. If you have a photo or an object that reminds you of Matt, feel free to bring it along.A Box type lunch will be provided. Please RSVP to:pegtyl@gmail.com In addition, for Matt’s friends and family on the west coast, there will be a memorial service in California. Details will be announced at a later time. To offer condolences, please visit his “Book of Memories” at falkfuneralhomes.com. In lieu of flowers please consider donating your time to an organization of your choice in Matt’s name. Should friends desire, memorial contributions may be sent to: https://www.sequoiaparksconservancy.org/tribute.html Please select “in memory of” for Matt and choose “search and rescue” from the drop down menu.