Matthew James Baker

“There are two types of people in this world - Bakers and those that want to be.” Born on July 21, 1979, Matthew James Baker was born three minutes ahead of his surprise twin sister, Melissa.

Matt attended Westminster High School, better known as “Westy,” where he was captain of the swim team and a member of the soccer team. Baker would often say that his high school soccer team “never won a game, but never lost a fight.” In classic Matt fashion, he and a few swim teammates streaked across the Westy football field during their senior year in nothing but Speedos to roars of applause and a standing ovation.

After high school, Matt attended the University of Nevada at Las Vegas. Matt dabbled in college and determined that it was not his cup of tea. He left Nevada and returned home to Colorado where he was hired to work at McCoy Sales. Following his work at McCoy Sales, he was employed at P.Z.I. Sales, Grundfos, and TM Sales. Throughout his career, Matt received multiple accolades and awards for his dedication and exceptionalism in sales.

During his tenure at McCoy, Matt met Dionna Kaska. On October 22, 2002, they welcomed their son, Austin James Baker, into this world.

One evening in 2001, at one of the parties Matt threw at his infamous Belmar bachelor pad, Matt ran into a girl who had just returned home from college in Hawaii. There was an immediate spark between the two. Matt always said that the first day he met Kris Ryan was the day he knew he met the love of his life and future wife. They stayed up all night talking until the sun came up. It was a magical moment where two souls had found their counterparts. Matt and Kris became best friends and their relationship continued to blossom. Their connection was so strong that Kris was present for the birth of Matt’s son, Austin. Eventually Matt and Kris wed on June 22, 2008 and shortly thereafter welcomed their own baby boy, Jonathan Matthew Baker, on May 1, 2009.

Matt and Kris, always very generous to loved ones, opened their doors to family and friends in their time of need, no questions asked. Matt would always say that it was important to raise up the people around you who you love. Matt didn’t blink an eye when his brother, Zac, needed a place to stay for nine months. He was not phased when Kris informed him that one of her best friends needed a place to go. With 11 dogs, including nine newborn puppies and three kids, Kris’ best friend moved into Matt and Kris’ house. As Matt always said, “If the job is big or small, do it right or not at all.”

Matt always said that he was the ”best pump guy west of the Mississippi.” There’s a lot of truth to that statement. When the company of McCoy Sales was struggling to stay afloat, Matt and his step brother, Chad, found investors to breathe new life into the company and reestablish its dominance in the industry.

Baker lived life at full speed without ever taking his foot off the gas. He had a large personality and was a devoted family man. He was a golf and fishing enthusiast and could often be found on the boat with his family towing kids on the tube or wakeboarding in the summer.

Whether it was jumping bikes off homemade wood ramps, multiple attempts at flips on a wakeboard, ripping down a mountain on a snowboard, going dove hunting and showing the game warden his dove (that was actually a woodpecker), or greasing up the wheels on a Razor scooter and bombing the hill on Wadsworth, whatever the crazy idea was, he always attempted it.

Generally, these events often started with Matt saying, “Hold my beer, kids. Let me show you how this is done.” More times than not, those attempts resulted in bruises, cuts, scrapes, and road rash, but Matt always got back up and tried again. That is who Matt was. He fought for what he believed he could do. He fought for his family, his friends, and most of all, himself.

Matthew James Baker passed away on Friday, July 22, 2022. He is survived by his wife, Kris; his two children, Austin and Jonathan; parents, Tim and Jeannine; stepmother Deidre; step dad Ron, and siblings Melissa, Sam, Zac, Jared, Randi, Chad, and Cade.

At the end of a day, as Matt would say: “When your name comes up on the big wheel, there’s nothing you can do.” He will “catch us all on the flip side.”

Per Matt’s wishes, there will be no funeral but a celebration of his life on Sunday, September 4. More details will be made available at a later date. We hope you can join us for this celebratory party.

A Go Fund Me page exists for the family and can be viewed here: https://gofund.me/970f8096