A courageous and brave battle fought with cancer by Matthew James Sandgren peacefully ended on August 23, 2012. He was 15 years old and with his family at their home in Bison, SD when he passed away.


A celebration of Matthew's life will be Tuesday, August 28, 2012 at 10:30 a.m. at the Bison School Gymnasium in Bison, SD. Rev. Florence Hoff will officiate and burial will follow at the Bison Cemetery. Visitations will be from 3:00 to 7:00 p.m. on Monday, August, 27 at the First Presbyterian Church in Bison and one hour prior to the Funeral at the Gym on Tuesday morning. A Gathering of Family and Friends will take place at 7:00 p.m. Monday evening at the Presbyterian Church.


Matthew James Sandgren was born May 2, 1997 in Hettinger, ND to James and Marci (Deuschle) Sandgren. He joined a sister, Kylee Bernice.


Matthew's first five years were filled with the blessing of living a carefree, everyday life. His childhood favorites included loving and caring for animals, Spiderman and the movie, "Toy Story". At age five, Matthew was diagnosed with Ewing's Sarcoma. His fight continued for nearly ten years until August 23, 2012 when he passed away at home.


Matt loved sports and was an avid Green Bay Packer fan. He served as student manager for the Bison High School football team and was a member of the Bison High School golf team. Matthew especially loved hanging out with his friends. His impersonations were spot on and brought laughter to all. He enjoyed camping, boating, tubing, fishing and anything water-related. The Sandgren family ranch was a favorite place to ride horse and four-wheel. A milestone for Matt was becoming a licensed driver. He enjoyed attending his Freshman prom and other school related activities with classmates and friends.


In his short life, Matthew impacted everyone he met with his sense of humor, quick wit, and caring, compassionate heart. Matt was selfless when it came to caring for others, even when he wasn't feeling well himself. He drew people in with his sparkling smile and genuine personality.


Matthew developed a relationship with the Lord at an early age, and his faith continued to grow throughout the years. He leaned on the Lord during all the difficulties he faced and shared his faith openly. It was important to Matt that everyone he cared about knew Jesus as their Lord and Savior, because he wanted to meet them all again someday in Heaven. Matthew was a confirmed member of the Bison Presbyterian Church and belonged to the Youth Group.


Privileged to have shared Matthew's life are his parents, James and Marci Sandgren, and sister, Kylee, Bison, SD; grandmother, Thelma Sandgren, rural Lemmon, SD; aunts and uncles, Mariette and Alton Cornella, Rapid City, SD; Steve and Susan Sandgren, Lemmon, SD; Georgia Sandgren, Sturgis, SD; Mark and Linda Sandgren, Golden, CO; Paulette and Carlie Ellison, Bison, SD; Rochelle and Ray Witte, Rapid City, SD; Wayne Stratmeyer, Rapid City, SD; and numerous cousins.


Proceeding him in death were his grandparents, Leland (Pete) and Bernice Deuschle and Francis (Bud) Sandgren.