On December 6, 2023, Frederick Matthis, Sr. passed away. He was born on May 26, 1933, the second son of John Ulrich and Anna Matthis in Vandergrift, Pennsylvania, coal country an hour north of Pittsburgh. Fred, as he was known to everyone, used his blue-collar upbringing and natural intelligence to become the first member of his family to attend college by way of the G.I. Bill and service in the Army Corp of Engineers, serving at the end of the Korean War. He graduated from Michigan Technological University with a degree in Mechanical Engineering with a minor in Machine Design in 1960.
Once in the workforce, he quickly gravitated to computers and their use in manufacturing, while working at United Engineering & Foundry in Pittsburgh. This was also where Fred met his future wife, Mary Kathleen (Kathy) Cannon. After the birth of his daughter Alissa, and son Frederick Jr, the young family moved to the east side of Michigan near Ann Arbor, where Fred worked for MDSI as a Senior Engineer. In 1984, the family moved to Holland when Fred began work at Haworth. Over a 13-year career as Senior Plant Manufacturing Engineer, Fred spearheaded the design and implementation of the large-scale computer system integration to production at the office furniture manufacturer.
A true renaissance man, Fred could be found riding his 1961 Harley Pan Head, working on any number of DIY projects around the home, windsurfing on Lake Macatawa, rollerblading or biking through Holland State Park, RV camping with his wife Kathy or flying R/C planes. It’s this last activity which morphed into an obsession and then into his final career. Fred designed, manufactured, and sold over a dozen different free flight and rubber powered aircraft with his company, Fly-M. Over two decades, Fly-M produced and sold over 4,000 plane kits across several continents. However, he found the most pleasure and satisfaction in teaching children and adults how to build and fly their own planes, becoming known as “The Airplane Man”. First and foremost, Fred was about family. He was an ever-present spectator at every school activity for his children from concerts to athletic events or sitting at the kitchen table helping with homework.
A man that could have a conversation with a princess or a pauper and come away with a new friend, Fred moved through every corner of society with ease and grace.
Fred is survived by his wife of 54 years Kathy, daughter Alissa (Dave) Estey, son Fred (Angie) Matthis Jr.; grandchildren Michael Edward Estey, Alexander Gabriel Estey, Frederick Griffin Matthis, and Eva Grace Matthis; brother Edward (Joyce) Matthis, and sister Ruth Ann (Dennis) Creech. He was preceded in death by his older brother John Ulrich Jr. (Faith) Matthis.
The family would like to thank the staff of Resthaven Care Center for the fantastic care provided to Fred.
In lieu of flowers, we kindly suggest a donation to one of Fred’s favorite organizations promoting science and technology to kids: https://www.eaa.org/eaa/apps/donations/donationye
Comments