Matthew Gillen

Submitted by: Lindsay Johnson (sister)
Born: 1989
Died: 2015
My Tribute: This picture is how I choose to remember my brother. We were goofing off on Christmas eve with my dad in 2010, trying on silly gifts. This was when he was a regular old pot smoker. Then he started using spice while in the military to elude detection. It is my belief the spice precipitated his diagnosis of bipolar.

After he was discharged from the navy, he was a whole different person. He stayed in GA for awhile, completed a rehab program for spice addiction (twice). We are six years apart, so unfortunately we weren’t very close at this time in our lives. But i did talk to him on the phone often. I know he like to snort percocets and use cocaine.

Then he moved home in June of this year. Did another treatment program at the VA, where my dad works. They were extremely close. On August 14th, my mom, myself, my husband and daughter, and my dad and brother all went out for dinner that night. My parents have been divorced now for 20 years, so this is something that doesn’t happen very often. The next day was my dads birthday.

The day my brother’s best friend (an EMT) had to break down the door to the brothers house and try to resuscitate him. The day they brought his lifeless, puke covered body to the ER in the hospital I WORK AT WHILE I WAS ON DUTY!
MY DAD’S BIRTHDAY.