Matthew Jordan Shattuck

Matthew Jordan Shattuck August 10, 2002 – April 25, 2026

Matthew Jordan Shattuck was born in Poland on August 10, 2002 and came home to his forever family in July 2007, when he and his older siblings Rachel and Benjamin were adopted and brought to St. Louis to begin a new chapter. He was not quite five years old. He would spend the next twenty years becoming someone unforgettable.

Matthew grew up in Ballwin and later Valley Park, where he graduated from Valley Park High School. He had recently found his footing in a career path that fit him beautifully — working as an optometry technician, where the doctors, staff, patients, and everyone around him simply loved him. His work ethic, his gentleness, his way with people — it showed up everywhere he went. He had decided to return to school this fall to complete his undergraduate degree and pursue his dream of becoming an optometrist. He was moving forward. He was becoming.

He was also a learner in every sense of the word. Matthew was a self-appointed expert in Star Wars, Lord of the Rings, and Pokémon — a fact his nephews Liam and Henry exploited at every opportunity and loved him all the more for. He played video games and card games with his family, watched action movies with them, and took quiet, knowing joy in glancing over mid-film to find Mom asleep again — rolling his eyes, catching his dad's gaze, and sharing a laugh that didn't need any words.

But there was another kind of learning that had taken hold of Matthew in recent years, and it was the kind that mattered most to him. One of his roommates painted a picture of Matthew that his family will carry forever: early in the mornings, on the floor, Bible open, journal beside it — reading, meditating, studying. He would send his parents texts before the sun was fully up, sharing what God had just revealed to him, marveling that he had missed it before, wanting to understand every related thread and talk about it for hours. He was in the Word. He was growing.

He had grown up in church, attending faithfully alongside his family. But something shifted when his family began attending Matthias' Lot Church in St. Charles. Matthew started coming on his own. And one evening, at a worship gathering his parents couldn't attend, something settled in him — he told his mom not long after that Matthias' Lot had become his church, not just theirs. He got involved in a Lot Family, fighting his natural introversion to build community as much as receive it. He became passionate about children's ministry, spending long conversations with his mom — a former preschool and children's minister — learning how to lead and teach kids well. It was something he prayed about often and hoped to pursue further.

Jesus was everything to him. In his own words, written to his dad not long ago:

"I cried out to the Lord and He indeed responded… He responded in a still small voice reminding me: I sent my Son for you… He is the Lord my God. I ask for prayer — that I continue to feel His still small voice reminding me of His love for me. Of what He has done for me. Praise the Lord."

Matthew battled mental illness with courage and honesty — acknowledging he couldn't do it alone, seeking help, staying in community, and returning again and again to the Scriptures. He was loved well by many, and he loved others in return with a quiet, persistent tenderness that often ran against his introverted nature. He did it anyway. That was the Jesus in him.

He was, without question, the favorite uncle in the room. The moment Matthew arrived, Liam, Henry, and Ellie knew it — and so did everyone else. No one else existed when Uncle Matt walked in. He would chase Ellie around and carry her until she couldn't stop laughing. He and Liam shared something special and rare. His family watched all of it and loved every second. He was exactly where he wanted to be when he was with those kids.

He was a devoted son — a self-described momma's boy who loved his dad with equal depth. He was a brother, a grandson, a nephew, a friend, a coworker, and a servant. He is survived by his parents Michael and Vicki Shattuck; his sister Rachel and her daughter Ellie; his brother Benjamin, his wife Natalie, and their sons Liam and Henry; his grandmother Carolyn "Mimi" Shattuck; his “Grandma Rose” Rosemary Bourland; and a beloved extended family of aunts, uncles, and cousins who meant the world to him — because family, in every form, mattered enormously to Matthew.

Matthew Jordan Shattuck went to be with his Lord Jesus on Saturday, April 26, 2026. He was 23 years old and would have turned 24 in August. His family does not know exactly what happened in those final hours, and they may never fully understand. What they know — what they hold onto with both hands — is that Matthew knew where his foundation was. He had built his house on the Rock. And when the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat against that house, it did not fall. Hope remains. Not because of these circumstances but because of the Rock. Jesus.

He is with Jesus now. He is in that cloud of witnesses. And his family believes he is cheering them on — keep running, keep your eyes on Jesus.

A Celebration of Life will be held at Matthias' Lot Church on Saturday, May 16. The family will receive visitors from 9:00–10:00 AM, with the service beginning at 10:00 AM. Details regarding memorial gifts will be shared soon.

In lieu of flowers, we ask you to consider honoring Matthew's love for children's ministry by making a donation to Matthias' Lot Church to support the construction of an indoor playground and Sensory Room. Donations can be made at www.matthiaslot.com/giving and directed to "memorial fund."