Obituary

Obituary of Mathew Mattam

October 2, 2020

Mathew Mattam was born on June 10, 1944, to the late Mathai and AnnammaPurappokara in Cherpunkal, Kerala, India. He enrolled at the Swiss-founded NetturTechnical Training Foundation (NTTF) in 1962 and graduated in 1966 with a certificate in Tool & Die Making. He started his career, in Bangalore, at Stumpp Schuele & Somappa, the leading manufacturer of industrial springs within India. In 1972, Mathew started the next phase of his life as an entrepreneur and co-founded Termino Tools, a successful manufacturer of tool and die sets utilized in the construction of precision metal components. He met his late wife, Treza, an officer and nurse within the Indian Air Force, fell in love, and got married on May 27, 1974. They welcomed their only child, Vinod, on October 5, 1975.

Becoming a father changed Mathew's life. His own father was a farmer and it was expected that Mathew would follow in his footsteps. However, Mathew's childhood love of reading influenced him deeply and instilled within him an unstoppable drive to improve his life through education. He struck out on his own to pursue this dream and became the only one of his siblings to obtain a post-secondary education. This experience led him to make educating his son the top priority. With that objective in mind, Mathew sold his thriving business, left the proximity of close friends and family in India, and immigrated to the United States in September 1980.

In the United States, Mathew and Treza established their home in the East Village neighborhood of Manhattan. He worked for several years as a tool and die maker for Waldes Truarc. Mathew's passion for entrepreneurism eventually led him to start Die Tech, a tool and die making business, in the early 1990s in Greenpoint, Brooklyn. As manufacturing businesses struggled to thrive due to cheaper production costs in other countries, Mathew decided to close Die Tech and join the New York City Transit Authority as a machinist. He retired after over 20 years of civil service in September 2018.

Throughout his adult life, Mathew provided for the financial needs of his 7 siblings and many nieces & nephews as well as their children. He supported their education and other financial needs in order to provide them with paths to better lives. Mathew and Treza worked hard to enable their son to attend some of the best schools in the world, notably Stuyvesant High School and Cornell University. Mathew and Treza's unwavering love for Vinod has shaped him into who he is today.

After Treza was diagnosed with cancer in 2002 and her subsequent death in November 2009, Mathew struggled to find happiness. His two grandchildren, Naveen and Kiran, began to fill that void over the years as he watched them grow. He looked forward to taking both boys to school, handling all routine shopping tasks, and supporting Vinod & Gladys in any way he could. Mathew lived with Vinod & Gladys for almost 10 years in Long Island City and spent the last year living across the street from them in his own apartment in Roosevelt Island. Mathew was consistently experiencing joy once again. He passed away suddenly at his apartment, after a wonderful summer spending quality time regularly with Vinod, Gladys, Naveen & Kiran as well as our extended family. Words can never express what he meant to the many family members, friends, and loved ones he has touched with his life. May God keep him together with his beloved wife, Treza, forever.

Mathew is survived by son, Vinod Mathew, daughter-in-law, Gladys Mathew, and grandchildren, Naveen and Kiran. In addition, he is survived by his sisters Mariyakutty and Rosamma, and his brother, George.

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