Matthew Walter aka Capt’n Hack Husband, Father, Son & friend

Hi I am a friend of the family wanting to anonymously raise some money for this loving family. I tried to put this all down the best way I could think of, please don’t be offended if I mixed up any of the details.

Matt Walter aka Capt’n Hack recently passed away suddenly and shockingly at 51 years of age after 1/2 an hour of Heidi performing CPR with Cody calling for help and their neighbor also suffered a stroke the same night. The paramedics, ambulance and firefighters were unclear and on the phone with hospitals and specialists to decide what to do for sure since it appeared he had a massive stroke, a heart attack with blockage and the serious chance of a AAA together under a recent diagnosis of suspected congestive heart failure all at once in the living room of their small fixer upper they purchased just a few months ago.

They had recently agreed and paused on the construction of the bathroom(s) due unknown water issue, a leak and a rat (if you know Matt you know that’s his “ah hell no!”) in order to get their toy hauler waterproofed just finished that earlier that day, get the doorway repaired, for Heidi to rid the rat, find the source of the water under the house and all of them to get the quads up and running for their whole family to get ready to go to the dunes for their son Cody’s 21st birthday party riding trip.

After the lease option to buy home they had planned on for years was retracted they began their hunt to find something further out of town with a big yard. A friend knew that they were looking and told them about a guy who passed away, leaving his house in Colton that needed lots of work but the property was more than they thought possible just yet. Especially since Heidi had been off work for a year repairing her physical health and trying to get a handle on her recent diagnosis of lupus she didn’t know she had been struggling for years. She kept her Surgical Assistant license by spending 100’s of hours doing continuing education by herself hoping to hurry up and finish the fixer upper enough to get back in the OR and save money to finish the other things the house needs. There was lots to do, leaky roof, windows, half the siding was done, one full bathroom was there but has severe water damage, and two broken pipes this last winter so needless to say it’s there but barely. The other bathroom was empty yet had begun some of the plumbing, there were holes around windows and foundation issues they still have not been able to fully address. But they gladly took on the challenge, Heidi has never been afraid to try something new or “fuck around and figure it out”. Appreciating the opportunity to avoid the house going on the market they told the previous owners’ family to leave everything so they could step away from having to deal with the house and it’s

many issues any longer on top of the sudden loss of their brother/son. Heidi and the sister in charge of the estate of the house bonded since they both had lost 2 brothers and so they wanted to make things as easy for them as possible.

Matt and Heidi dreamed of making a place together for the kids to be able to come visit, play, stay, eat and laugh. With room enough to ride a quad and eventually get some cows, fainting goats, couple ducks and put together a greenhouse from recycled windows Heidi had been gathering. She recently obtained an entire bathroom of supplies for the remodel of the MBR and part of the main bathroom by helping a friend demo her bathroom and then found jetted tub for free because the jets quit working (which she fixed for $8.33). All this while they shuffled around their much smaller house that was under construction to add a friend of their sons who needed a place to stay, (who just that week moved out) their daughter and her boyfriend stayed temporarily durning that time too all with not quite a full complete bathroom, multiple broken pipes thru the winter, vehicles broken down, fixed and broke a different way (I know nothing about cars to elaborate on that) but they kept on working on things and going thru stuff to size down and process all the stuff that was once a mountain in the backyard for a couple months, their things that were still boxed up and stuff that was re-boxed to accommodate the extra people crammed in half the house they had before with half the people. All Matt could see was his dream of sitting on his front porch BBQ going and having a drink with Heidi, the kids, any or all of his friends/family/neighbors while sharing stories and laughing together.

He had recently transferred from the bus maintenance as a journeyman diesel mechanic, on swing shift with his best friend Jake and a crew of amazing guys he loved to work beside in order to learn the commuter train side and work with Will (I believe that is his name), a few other close friends and the possibility of increased overtime opportunities in hopes to keep Heidi home for a while longer and be able to make ends meet all the while preparing to grow old together.

Megan has been juggling her teething toddler and with the help of her husband Sean picked up the dogs and came closer selflessly to his parents in order to take shifts and be able to be there by Heidi’s side to help her get thru this. Seth and Daniel both had been caretaking his mom this past few days but have to return to work back in Gresham at a care facility for disabled special needs patients. Cody who still lives there had his girlfriend Maddy stay to help him, his siblings and mom making sure they eat and get rest. Cody has really stepped up huge to help his mom. Last I heard he has not been back to work just yet in order to help his mom and siblings figure all this out while still in shock. Bree’s back at her business she is the sole owner of Schedeen’s in Gresham. Chloe is going to return to work tomorrow because she wants to make her way in this world on her own and feels obligated to finish paying off debts that her boyfriend left her responsible for after their landlord/her friend kicked him out of the apartment for refusing to be good to Chloe or pay his way. I am hoping she decides to move back home for a while with her mom after her friend/landlord moves to Texas this summer. That way she can keep an eye on her mom and maybe go to college. She just recently graduated high school. All of Matt and Heidi’s kids and their significant others stayed for the first couple days together in that small 1200sq ft farmhouse built in 1900 cuddled up on a mattress on the floor, the couch, Matt’s chair and a loveseat in the same living room they just lost their dad in so they could all gather around and comfort their mom who devastated and exhausted and was almost admitted to the hospital herself when she passed out , weak and unable to breathe while laying on Matt’s chest in the hospital bed she had crawled up and onto minutes after their daughter had to give her the news he was already gone (they (Cody and Heidi) arrived a little later after havin to wait for the paramedics and firemen to clear out of their house and driveway) thinking he was in surgery and praying he would be ok. Such a heartbreaking situation to happen to such an incredible family in spite of all the cards they have been dealt.

With all the being said, I know they have, family, a large friend group they call family and that all their work friends past and present have been an integral part in their lives as well. They have never been afraid of hard work and thoroughly enjoy playing hard too! If you know them you also know you could call on any of the Walnuts at any time day or night and they wouldn’t hesitate to over extend themselves in any way in order to help a friend or even a friend of a friend, a neighbor (all whom they treat as family) or even a stranger with out the hint of judgement or payback in mind.

How about we all spread the word that the sudden loss of the this God fearing, incredible, fun loving, hard working, dedicated, amazing man has put his family in a tough spot not just emotionally but definitely financially as well, knowing that neither he, Heidi or even the kids would ever complain or even dream of asking to be paid what they deserved let alone anything they didn’t earn themselves and let’s see how far this goes.

Let’s use technology along with happy thoughts, good vibrations and prayers to raise some much needed money for a very deserving family in order to take some of the financial pressure off of them, if even for a while.