Memories of Matt Bjorge

In memory of

Matt Bjorge

Taylorsville, UT, USA

August 21, 1976 - November 19, 2019

Aug 21, 1976 - Nov 19, 2019

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Amy Pitt

Thinking about how Matt could solve a rubiks cube behind his back. I miss him.

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Lisa Tharp

Matt is often on my mind. I miss him and his humor, but it is his kindness that often stands out. He excelled at so much but always made people feel better for being his his presence. I am so sorry that light is gone. And I look forward to seeing some of that light in Alexander and Kate.

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kathy Pitt

I still think about Matt and feel sorrow that his life ended the way it did. He loved his kids and had great patience with them. I feel solace knowing that he is in a better place and that there is hope for all of us.

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Alan Wessman

I recently wondered what had become of my best friend from childhood, and was saddened to come across this obituary after a Google search.

I lived just a few houses down from Matt, on the connecting street. We were good friends for many years, until my family moved away.

I have wonderful memories of Matt and his family. I hope that by sharing some, it can bring a smile to the face of his loved ones who survived him.

Matt and I were kindred spirits in many ways, but although Matt was a year younger than I, he blew me away with his aptitude for math and computers. We spent many hours with his Texas Instruments 99/4A cartridge games, at which he was expert and I was middling.

Neither of us was an exceptional athlete, but Matt had a basketball hoop in his driveway and mastered the underhand shot. He regularly demolished me in H-O-R-S-E and yet was a good sport about it, even when I wasn't.

In the summer we would build elaborate contraptions in his back yard, and then pick gooseberries from the bushes and roll them down the tracks we had built so they would land in a bucket at the end. Or we would have epic croquet games or all sorts of other creative kinds of play.

One vivid memory I have is seeing a school project he did to show the effects an earthquake could have in the Salt Lake Valley. He had built an elaborate model of Salt Lake City out of gingerbread, for both the before- and after- scenarios. Some of the beloved and famous landmarks in Salt Lake didn't fare well in his post-earthquake scenario!

Matt put up with my idiosyncrasies and was always kind. So were his parents. Though our families were of different faiths, that was never an issue between us, and I feel that Matt's friendship towards me helped me to appreciate diversity in beliefs and traditions.

To Matt's loved ones, I offer my deepest condolences, and I hope his memory and his goodness shine bright within you.

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Comments:

Amy Bjorge

Hi, Alan
I know you by name even though we never met. Matt used to tell me all about the fun times you ... Read more Hi, Alan
I know you by name even though we never met. Matt used to tell me all about the fun times you had and the gooseberry... Read more Hi, Alan
I know you by name even though we never met.... Read more

Erik Rasmussen

2017, Salt Lake City, UT, USA

Matt, and I were coworkers two years back. I was fairly new to programming when I met him and he was truly the kindest, would drop everything to help you. He also was super funny and a deep thinker that you could talk with him about any topic and he'd surprise you with what he knew.

I also remember the excitement had for spending time with his son and could tell he was an awesome dad. He spent time helping his son making a video game because his son was so excited about it.

He truly was a one of kind of person and has made a major impact about who I want to be. In the work place and at home.

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Comments:

Alexander Bjorge

I am Matt's son, and I definitely remember making some sort of video game, we made something called "dwarfy"... Read more I am Matt's son, and I definitely remember making some sort of video game, we made something called "dwarfy" and it was an automated... Read more I am Matt's son, and I definitely remember making some... Read more

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Jun Fan

Matt will be deeply missed. I worked with Matt at Salt lake county for five years. He always impressed us with his great ability on all mind challenges. He was such a nice person, a great team worker and a loving father. Many of us at the county who had worked with Matt had fond memory of him.

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Kim Tanner

I am truly sorry for your loss. I worked with Matt at Salt Lake County. He is one of the smartest individuals I have known. He was so kind to everyone. He will be deeply missed.

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Robert Taylor

I worked with Matthew and Dina for 5 years and we always talked about Puzzles and cubes He got me hooked on the 7x7. I remember when I brought in a kendama I got from Japan. That got Matthew interested and the rest is history. I have fond memories working with Matthew. He truly was a very kind person. He
will be missed.

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Comments:

Amy Bjorge

Robert, thanks for taking the time to comment. I remember when Matthew got the kendama fever. Introducing... Read more Robert, thanks for taking the time to comment. I remember when Matthew got the kendama fever. Introducing that to him helped... Read more Robert, thanks for taking the time to comment. I remember... Read more

Brent Emerson

I was in school with Matt from 5th-12th grades, and we were close friends for many of those years. So many of us who were at Lowell and West with Matt have fond memories of him. Matt was captivated by mathematical beauty. When he discovered Euler's identity, he rushed to show and explain it to me, long before I could really grasp it. We argued about infinity with our math teachers, and he was always the most right. We built logic gates out of cardboard and marbles for a science fair. In PE class, we invented and delighted in exponential ping-pong, a game which I still remember and teach to my coworkers when they're ready for a little extra fun. Matt fought against dogma and violence. He was generous and caring and naïve, in the best possible way. We were children and adolescents together. We were outsiders together. He was an important part of my life, and I'm grateful to him for his friendship. I'm so happy to see that his remarkable spirit lives on in his children.

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Comments:

Amy Bjorge

Thank you Brent. I can't remember if we've met. If we did it was a long time ago. Matt would often talk... Read more Thank you Brent. I can't remember if we've met. If we did it was a long time ago. Matt would often talk about you and your ... Read more Thank you Brent. I can't remember if we've met. If... Read more

Mike Owen

I am completely heartbroken and miss him dearly. I will remember all the good times we had playing online or board games. I will also miss the great times we had playing tennis.

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Chad Petersen

Matt, you were such a nice, giving and genuine individual. The world became a little more darker when you left us. I am so happy that you are still here in your beautiful children.
Rest in peace Matt.

Love Chad Petersen

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Dina Goncharenko

One of my happiest memories is a year when Matt ran both a half and a marathon. I remember how dedicated he was, how religiously he trained. How proud he was when he finished. He also was a regular blood donor. He took it seriously. We'd plan to go for a drink after work but if he'd get a call he'd cancel without a hesitation. He never turned them down.

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Comments:

Amy Bjorge

Matt was O negative but also CMV negative which made it so he was able to donate to infants who require CMV... Read more Matt was O negative but also CMV negative which made it so he was able to donate to infants who require CMV negative blood. Only... Read more Matt was O negative but also CMV negative which made... Read more

Dina Goncharenko

Matt was this friend who was always on your side. I would be beating myself up for something and he would always find the words where I'd start seeing things differently, from his perspective, where I was always doing everything right.
He was this walking encyclopedia. I don't know how one person could keep so much knowledge about the most random things. I miss talking with him. He definitely is one of the most interesting people I have ever met, a deep, great conversationalist.
He was a great friend. Compassionate, always willing to jump to your side, kind. Angry if he thought you were mistreated. Protective. Smart. Funny. Fun. I remember I was pregnant and craving pickles. He went to a Burger King once and brought a plastic cup full of pickles for me.

I know for sure he is the most honest person I have ever met.

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Dina Goncharenko

Research Informatics

Matt loved a good prank. He once wrote a prototype of an email engine, a simulator, and started sending me these emails that I could not track down.
I knew that he was very particular about the way the toilet paper is hung. He would go to a public restroom and if the roll was facing the 'wrong' direction he would take it off the toilet paper holder, turn it, and hang it back facing the 'right' direction. So I'd go after hours to the men's bathroom and turn all the rolls back. I'd then listen to him complain about it at work the next morning.

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Dina Goncharenko

I was cleaning my drawers today and found this very old looking, dirty and overused piece of an eraser, which used to be white and soft. Matt got it for me when he hooked me on Sudoku. We would go through books of it at a time. I used to complete mine with a pen, and if I messed up I would use a whitening tool to cover it up, so he got me this eraser and a box of pencils. It's funny how such a little piece can flood you with so many memories. I remember coming to work and finding some copied pages of Sudoku puzzles on my desk from Matt. The ones that he'd find particularly interesting to share.
Matt was just as absent-minded as he was brilliant. Multiple times he drove my car when we went to lunch together, and then put my keys into his pockets, left to go home, and did not realize that he had my keys til the next morning when I'd chastise him at work. I had to start keeping a set of spare keys to my car after a few times being stranded because of this.

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Dina Goncharenko

Matt really enjoyed challenging problems. He would lose interest quickly doing the daily primitive tasks at work and would have a hard time staying motivated to finish them. But complex issues is what he really loved and was excellent at. Every time I have to analyze massive data or an enormous amount of numbers I think of him wishing he was there. How he would pull up an Excel, come up with a formula, color code the results, and the complex massive rows of data would turn into simple pages with clear titles very quickly. He had unique abilities. He is missed.

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Amy Bjorge

Dina Goncharenko

Matt was a brilliant programmer. His code had a signature. It was an aesthetical pleasure to read through it. I can recognize his code amongst everyone else's still. It's like a person's handwriting. You can look at it and recognize the author because of how clear, clean, and precise it is.
Matt would always write an algorithm before writing a new piece of code. His algorithms were hilarious. He had this ability to dissect the most complex problem and put it on a piece of paper in simple words to a point where you would start feeling bad for not thinking of it yourself. He would then write a function (he never used the word function, he used 'method' and we argued about the terminology). He would name it something like 'isMattDumb' and the body would say 'if mattIsDumb then StupidMatt else mattIsA**hole'. I know the memories are for his kids, but uncensored Matt is what made him so much fun. This is what I remember now, the fun and funny Matt who was so easy going and so nerdy. I remember the first time we met I was being introduced to a team as I was new to the job. Matt immediately asked me a Java question, I don't think he even said 'hello' first.

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Comments:

Alexander Bjorge

It may be so that this is for his kids, but there were a couple of certain jokes my dad has pulled on me,... Read more It may be so that this is for his kids, but there were a couple of certain jokes my dad has pulled on me, once time, he said to... Read more It may be so that this is for his kids, but there were... Read more

Dina Goncharenko

I saw a lot of cars in France last summer with the 'FU' on their plates which of course made me think of ... Read more I saw a lot of cars in France last summer with the 'FU' on their plates which of course made me think of Matt. I know it'd made... Read more I saw a lot of cars in France last summer with the ... Read more

Dina Goncharenko

I saw this sign some time ago, an ad for this insurance agent [some_first_name] Costly. I snapped a pic and... Read more I saw this sign some time ago, an ad for this insurance agent [some_first_name] Costly. I snapped a pic and sent it to Matt as... Read more I saw this sign some time ago, an ad for this insurance... Read more

Dina Goncharenko

Matt had this unique sense of humor. Sometimes it would take you a while to get his joke, but once you got it you would appreciate how clever it is. Once we were in a meeting and a coworker of ours was telling us how he happened to be in the Seattle's City library during the only earthquake this city ever had. Matt quickly said, "Hope you were in the soft science department".

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Dina Goncharenko

SLC, UT

Whenever we drove together we would look at the cars around us trying to find the HTTP codes in their plate numbers. Then one of us would point it out and the other would have to say what it means. 404 - Not Found, 503 - Service Unavailable, 504 - Timeout and so on. Then we would look at the letter portion of the plate and try to decode the meaning of it at the same time concatenating
it with the numbers. Matt would come up with the funniest phrases. We would see 503 DIA on a freeway and he would says 'Careful! Service Unavailable - Driver Is Asleep'. It was so much fun riding with him. I still do this, find a code and try to come up with something funny to decode the plate. Every time it's something hilarious I wish Matt was there to laugh with me about it.

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Amy Bjorge

Dina Goncharenko

2018, SLC, UT

A little over a year ago, someone rang my doorbell around 10 at night on a Saturday. It was Matt. He asked me to drive him to a liquor store not too far from my house. He said we only had a few minutes as the store was about to close til Monday. He asked me to grab my I.D. , and to drive him in my car to the store. As we were driving he told me that he was looking for this particular type of beer and the only store that had it was the one by my house. So Matt got in a car and started driving 15 mi to buy this beer. As he was driving he was pulled over by the police as his car registration was expired. While handing his driver's license to the police officer he realized that his license was expired as well. I felt like an underage teenager going to the store and buying him beer while he was waiting for me in my car. But it was all Matt. He could tell 100 numbers of PI and multiply 4 digit numbers in his head while waiting in traffic, but could not remember to renew his license and registration on time.

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Amy Bjorge

Kimball Ball

Salt Lake County, UT, USA

I worked with Matt at the Salt Lake County Substance Abuse Services Division. I was always impressed with his intelligence and ability to solve problems. I don't believe I have ever met anyone else with the same love of math that Matt had nor have I ever known anyone who could consistently win at poker like Matt could.

Several of us co-workers would go to lunch together on a regular basis and I remember Matt liking spicy food and being willing to take on just about any food challenge. One day at a Chinese restaurant another co-worker challenged Matt to eat one of the hot peppers in his Szechuan pork. I warned Matt that those peppers were there just to give the food flavor and would be too hot to eat. Matt wouldn't back down from the challenge. He ate the pepper and then drank his and everyone else's water trying to cool down his mouth. I don't think he could taste anything the rest of the day.

I wish the best for Matt's family at his passing and hope they are comforted by the good memories they have of him and the stories being shared here.

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Chad Petersen

Phil Martinez

2002, Salt Lake City, UT, USA

Matt and I had a meeting in downtown SLC so we decided to take the bus from the government center. After the meeting the State street bus has just left our stop. As we were waiting for the next bus the clouds became really dark and Matt says "this doesn't look good". Sure enough in about 3 minutes it just dumped buckets of rain on us. We were so wet by the time the next bus came that our shoes were squishing as we were walking back into the office. Everyone had a good laugh from that one.

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Kimball Ball

Brian Pitt

I always enjoyed playing poker with Matt. I never once saw him lose his temper and he was always kind to everyone. He would always be so happy to tell me stories about his kids. It was very evident how much he loved Alexander and Katie. He will be missed .

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Amy Bjorge

Kathy Pitt

Matt was a very smart and kind man. He was great with computers and math and figuring out problems. But what he was very best at was loving his children. He was so kind and patient with his kids. He loved them more than anything and was always there for them. Matt will be missed.

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Tim Maness

I worked with Matt at Research Informatics, we shared the same cubicle for about a year. He was a brilliant person and shared many stories about his kids and Dad. He was always fun to work with and clearly had a great love for his family. You are missed.

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