Tribute Fundraiser in Memory of Mathew Chin

On Monday, November 2, 2020, we were notified of horrific news. Our coworker, Mathew Chin, had passed away from complications with the covid-19 virus.

Mathew Chin, who worked out of Rocklin, CA, was a Field Engineer on our Gas Construction Engineering team, and had been with PG&E for seven years. Matt, 38, passed away after a short illness and leaves behind his wife and two children, with a third on the way. Our hearts go out to Matt’s family, friends, colleagues and all of those whose lives are touched by this tragic loss. 

In an effort to help support Matt's family during this most difficult time, we have organized this campaign to help cover funeral expenses and to assist Matt's family during this unforeseen transition. Thank you, in advance, for anything you may provide! 

Below, are sentiments written by Matt's coworkers. Our friend will truly be missed. 

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In the face of this truly sad news, I thought I’d share a story about Matty that always makes me chuckle.

When I first started I had one-on-ones with everyone on the team.  I asked what was going well and what wasn’t, and all those silly things I thought an new Supervisor should ask.  I also asked, “What do you like to do in your spare time?”  No offense, but with all the people I interviewed, Matty’s answer was the only one that I completely remember.  “SLEEP!!  I got kids man and I drive a lot, so if I have any free time, I SLEEP.”

Hope you all can picture him saying that like I can, and it brings a smile to your face.

Respectfully,

Kyle Freed

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I remember the same about Mat. He had a long commute and, for a while there his car heater was stuck in the “on” position so he’d have to roll down all of the windows on the hotter days. He was very kind and generous and a great person to talk to while getting through the great work that we all did at the Ranch. He will be very missed for sure.

Dean
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I remember Mat’s first day he was so excited to be there, to start learning and contributing to the team. I know how grateful he was; knowing he could take care of his family just seemed to make him glow. His kindness and easy going spirit made him a pleasure to work with and though I hadn’t seen him in years I feel the loss.  

Chris
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Matt always had such good energy and was always positive no matter the circumstance. Was shocked and heartbroken to hear the news =(.

Sal Aminyar
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Mat’s lighthearted character made him very approachable and optimistic. There are two phrases I remember most about him. When I asked him for help, he always made sure I understood asking “you koo; you koo?”. And when things would get a little complicated he’d shake it off shrugging his shoulders and saying “it’s koo though” and he’d move on. I will always cherish these memories from Mat, and will definitely miss him.

Vilney
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Man, I was devastated to hear the news.  I first heard his name the call this morning and wasn’t sure if it was “our” Matt.  He was simply the most energetic, excitable, humble, and hilarious person I have met.  I loved his comedic stories about his kids and now they are so relatable now having my own.  I can 100% visualize him in Kyle’s story. He was truly a positive force in this world and will be missed. 

Jaisun Evans
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Matt was my friend at work and outside of work. I had the pleasure of working directly with him since he joined our FE team.  We’ve spent many of nights hydrotesting and weekends together supporting the crews.  Matt always brought a great attitude to work.  I’ve always admired his ability to remain calm in stressfully situations and, when I got stressed, he was always there to remind me that he had my back and we were a team.  I’ll never forget our time together in the office spent joking with coworkers or how he liked walking around without shoes.  Work won’t ever quite be the same without him.  He will be missed. 

Alex Rodriguez
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The first is when I transferred from the South to the North.  Matt was the first Field Engineer that I worked with, and felt “welcomed” by.  My first impression, was that Matt was an easy person to talk to, easy going and had a positive, smiling attitude.  Probably the reason why I felt comfortable around him, as the new guy in town.  There were a few times when I would help with the current project he was on.  One day, we had to stay late, and perform a nitrogen hydrotest.  I just recently passed my OQ.  We struggled a couple of times on this test; and may have even had to come back the second day.  Matt was there to help me out; trying to figure out how we can control such a tight window.  When I over-pressurized the test window, I remember Matt joking and laughing, but still there to support me.  We often look back and joke on this, even recently, when performing new tests.

The second story is similar.  I had a project out in the middle of nowhere.  Even though I cant remember the location, I know It was a good hour plus drive from Matt’s office.  I lacked In planning enough nitrogen to perform the ILI test on the launcher assembly, and the hard set schedule meant the test had to be completed that day.  Matt took time out of his schedule to go pick up a couple of extra nitrogen bottles and have them delivered while I was trying to start the test.  Of course he had a good laugh out of it.

These two memories are ones that I wont forget, and (to me) it shows just how much of a Team member Matt was and how he was always willing to help.  This is a trait that he always held, the 4 years I had the opportunity to work with Matt.  

Among the many hats that Matt wore as an FE: from project planning and estimating, set-up and construction execution, and close-out & as-builting; Matt was well rounded in every aspect of his job.  I could always lean on him to assist when needed.  I often wondered how he can take so much on his plate, and always say he’s good; rarely asking for help because he was over-loaded.  Matt’s a master when it came to self-schedule management.  That taught me to keep it simple when I could.  Not only was Matt skilled in all the work GT Field Engineer’s do, he became a “black belt” in Distribution projects as well; completing 4+ dual asset projects in 2020. 

I can go on, but in closing, Matt’s upbeat personality made him someone we all loved being around.  It made my day easier, knowing when he was in office. That meant I’d have someone to talk with about non-work stuff.  He is truly missed.

Daniel Mello
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I will miss Matty Chin – he was the nicest guy. Even after he left our team he was still part of the family. It breaks my heart. He didn’t deserve this.  

Thanks,

Kristine Kent
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Matt always had an upbeat attitude no matter what the problem was or how big…his famous words to me are “Naaaa Man we’ll get it fixed, not a big deal.” It was always nice to see Matt when I was having a bad day, his spirit was always high no matter what and would teach me that to look at things on the bright side.

Never forget that he always wore his slippers in the office.

Justin Phelan