After growing up in a small country town in Illinois, Matthew joined the US Navy and traveled the world on active and reserve duty, retiring as a Chief Petty Officer with 20 years service and visiting or living in 20 countries.Matthew received his BFA in acting from the University of Michigan in 2001 and then took a Navy job in London to finance his move to New York, but ended up living in Europe for 12 years, where he acted, worked at a US Embassy, and started a family.After returning to the Chicago area in 2013, he began his US acting career.