Northwestern Memorial Foundation in memory of Mary K. Matson
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Beloved Mother, Sister, Aunt and Friend
Mary was born on June 2, 1939, in Galesburg, Illinois, and died on October 5, 2022. She is survived by her daughter Rachel, sisters and brothers, nieces and nephews, and dear friends.
She is credited as the creative force behind numerous retail and restaurant enterprises and was a founding partner in establishing the Seminary Street Historic Commercial District in downtown Galesburg. She was an early advocate for tourism as an unheralded economic development ingredient. She received statewide honors with a President’s Award for Lifetime Achievement by Landmarks Illinois, acknowledging her revitalization work in preserving historic properties and advancing downtown economic development.
Mary was an avid reader, a skilled Scrabble player, a cat fancier, a talented artist, and a take-no-prisoners cartoonist. She was knowledgeable about classic movies, art and music. She applied her considerable artistic talents to several fields, including drawing, interior design and gardening. She was fiercely honest and politically engaged. She will also be remembered by friends for her irreverent sense of humor. Those close to her were inspired by her courageous will to live, to rebound and overcome one adversity after another without ever voicing complaint.
Throughout her life Mary was challenged with numerous health issues which she faced with an indomitable spirit and resolve. She endured dozens of surgeries and cancer treatments and rallied repeatedly against the odds. At age 31, Mary suffered kidney failure and received one of the country’s earliest transplant operations in 1970 from an NIH grant at Northwestern Memorial Hospital. Through diligent care, she maintained the kidney for over 52 years and entered the record books as the world’s longest surviving kidney transplant from a non-related deceased donor. She lived her last two and a half years on dialysis at home with her beloved cats.
Gifts may also be made to Northwestern Memorial Foundation PO Box 734985 Chicago, Illinois 60673-4985. Please make checks payable to "Northwestern Memorial Foundation" and include Mary Matson in the memo line. Donations can also be made online at foundation.nm.org or over the phone at 833.443.8663.
All gifts in memory of Mary Matson will be directed to support Solid Organ Transplantation at Northwestern Medicine.