Matt was born on December 17, 1976 to Lyndon and Diane Williams Mackey, in Midland, Texas. He graduated with the class of 1995 from Cahoma High School in Cahoma, Texas. Eighteen days later, he started his career in the military on June 6, 1995 in El Paso, Texas, by joining the United States Marine Corps and later the Army National Guard. On April 16, 1998, he married Kaanan Anderson in Jacksonville, North Carolina. Matt served in Operation Enduring Freedom/Noble Eagle in 2004 and Operation Iraqi Freedom from October 2008 to October 2009. He was currently taking classes at Indian Hills Community College for aviation. He held a passion for flying and for his motorcycles. He enjoyed playing rugby, fishing, camping and gardening. Matt's greatest love was for his family, especially his children. He is survived by his wife of twelve years, Kaanan Mackey of Grinnell; five children, Alexis, Jonathan, Chloe, Aiden and Hana, all of Grinnell; his parents, Lyndon and Diane Mackey of Sterling, Colorado; one brother, Michael (Danielle) Mackey of Scotts Bluff, Nebraska; two sisters, Morgan (Kimo) Everett of Grinnell and Sarah (Jeff) Berryhill of Pineville, Missouri; maternal grandmother, Geneva Williams of Graham, Texas; and several nieces, nephews, cousins, dear friends, and his brothers and sisters in arms. Matt died in the arms of his wife on Wednesday, July 28 at Mercy Hospital in Des Moines from injuries he sustained from a motorcycle accident, at the age of 33. He was preceded in death by his maternal grandfather, Leeroy Williams; his paternal grandparents, Orval and Lula Mackey and his fallen brothers and sisters. Memorials may be directed to the Matthew L. Mackey Memorial Fund and sent in care of the Smith Funeral Home, PO Box 368, Grinnell, Iowa 50112, to benefit his children.