John Bruce Matherson
July 19, 1954 - May 17, 2008
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John Bruce Matherson
July 19, 1954 - May 17, 2008
Obituary
John Bruce Matherson
July 19, 1954 – May 17, 2008
‘Drive Fast; Take Chances’
A native Southern Californian, John was born July 19, 1954 in Downey, California so it’s no surprise that he never lived more than 50 miles from his birthplace. He loved Southern California; the desert; the mountains; the beaches and especially anywhere he could ride a bike!
John graduated from Buena Park High School where he was an excellent student. His scholastic aptitude earned him acceptance into the prestigious Air Force Academy. But when the time came to board the plane, John chose to follow his heart instead. If you know John you knew one thing for sure; he would choose passion over prestige any day. So, instead of boarding that plane he headed home and followed his heart and lifelong passion; motorcycles.
His love affair with motorcycles started as a young boy when he, his brother Bill, and his dad would build bicycles, which lead to go carts, mini bikes and ultimately motorcycles. As a kid John’s determination was obvious as he would overcome any obstacle to ‘ride’ even if it meant putting a milk crate against the wall so he could get on his bike!
His first racing experience was at Ascot Raceway in Gardena where he raced ‘flat track.’ From then on he raced any kind of race he could including ‘road racing’ and Speedway ‘sidecars.’ His son, Jim, said ‘He was so cool – he was the man. He had an entourage of supporters and people who loved him. It was just so much fun to be in the pits. Between races guys would rebuild his bike because they loved him and looked up to him. He was my hero growing up!’
As much as John loved motorcycles, there was no comparison to the real love of his life, Robin/Blondie his favorite nickname for his girl. Robin and John were married on April 9, 1983, the same day Mission Yamaha was born. It should come as no surprise to anyone that their wedding reception was fittingly held in the Service Department!! What a joyous day for John to have both of his ‘loves’ united under one roof.
John would frequently call up to Blondie’s office and say ‘singing’ which was their code for ‘I love you.’ John didn’t just love Robin, he adored her. She’s the love of his life. For most men taking on the responsibility of raising 3 teenage children might be too big a challenge. But John applied his fearless perseverance and without fail he won the love and respect of each of the kids. They loved him because he was ‘fair,’ never judgmental or critical. He was a champion for them and always their biggest supporter through some of the toughest times of their lives. John said, ‘What I loved most about him was the way he treated mom.’ I will always remember Hannah telling me ‘Do a burn-out Daddy or Grandpa says you’re a girl’ ‘I love you Dad.’ In tears Lori whispered, ‘He was a loving role model as a father and a grandfather. He put my mom on a pedestal and loved her in a way that I want to be loved someday. No matter what you needed he’d be there for anything.’ Is there anything better than to leave this kind of legacy in your children’s hearts?
John was blessed with a loving immediate family; his brother Bill and twin sisters, Becky and Betty and all together seven nieces and nephews he loves.
With John it was all about ‘family’ so much so that he was there for the birth of ALL 7 grandkids; Daniel, Rachel, Alexis, Makenzie, Ryder, Hannah and Chase. And you can bet he’ll be there for #8 who is due to arrive this July. Grandpa had a unique and special relationship with each of them. He always met them on their level whether it was building rockets with the boys or being sassy with the girls. With the grandkids, the little boy in John would come out and there was laughter, big smiles and even bigger hugs. There was an unmistakable sparkle in his eyes when he was with them.
How can anyone sum up the impact of John’s life? Like the ripples of a rock in a pond, John’s life radiated outward and touched so many lives. Too many to count; too many to know. From the woman who knew him best, after 25 amazing years, Robin remembers a husband who had a passion for life. Whether it was cooking for friends and family, mentoring young guys, tinkering in the shop, tasting a new wine, traveling to new and exciting places, John did it all full throttle. He was always happy, optimistic and you could count on him to be the life of the party. There was a thing he taught the grandkids that kind of sums up John’s life philosophy:
Green Light – GO
Red Light – STOP
Yellow Light – GAS IT!!!
‘He loved life and lived each day as if it was his last.’ No regrets.
The impact of John’s life will live on in the hearts of those he loved and those who were blessed to love him.
‘I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race; I have kept the faith.’
2 Timothy 4:7
In lieu of flowers, the family has requested honoring John Matherson’s memory through donations to the Cordelia Knott Center of Wellness, 230 S. Main St. Orange, CA
124 responses to John Bruce Matherson
Anonymous says:
May 21, 2008
The last time I would see him
The day was perfect for a party in the hills. The sky was a cold blue and the smell of sage and hay made their way down to where I had parked between the house and the water tower. The dirt road gave way to the cut brick of Blue Sky Ranch. Holding my 2 ÃÂ¥? month-old daughter Sydney by the strap of the car seat and 2 year old son Sage”°Ã¢”šÂ¬Ã¢”žÂ¢s hand I felt a sense of family and ease that make you want to run with excitement. Doggie, horsey my son said as we scooted up past Budley who playfully threw dirt around his giant pen with the other two dogs. My son greeted the horses, who were in mid graze in the eucalyptus lined pasture, in the way a curious camper might greet a bear. I thought about John when he had taken my son”°Ã¢”šÂ¬Ã¢”žÂ¢s hand and, against Robin”°Ã¢”šÂ¬Ã¢”žÂ¢s better judgment, lead him around the stalls and running area to meet the horses. I had never felt concerned though, because if you were with John somehow you were safe, and I knew my son was safe. We came up the stairs and passed the florencian fountain where just months earlier John and I had been in trouble for debating the necessity of a huge pillowy couch and matching knick knacks. John was standing to the left of the big door, his pasty white legs sticking out of his dark shorts and eventually ending at his feet which were covered by flip flops. His hair had grown out nicely from the charity event where he shaved it. It was hard to tell that he had just had surgery on his knee to repair years of pushing the limits in every way possible. “°Ã¢”šÂ¬Ã…”Karro”°Ã¢”šÂ¬Â! He exclaimed, in a bright Mexican accent as he did every time he saw me. “°Ã¢”šÂ¬Ã…”You brought the new addition.”°Ã¢”šÂ¬Â He eyed Sydney and gave his approval, for surely they would get to know each other well. I reached into my black and green diaper bag and felt the cool smooth faÃŒ¤ade of a bottle that was one of John”°Ã¢”šÂ¬Ã¢”žÂ¢s favorites, Silver Oak Napa. “°Ã¢”šÂ¬Ã…”Nice, you got the price tag sitting straight up, nice.”°Ã¢”šÂ¬ÂHe said. I joked that it was ten percent off of that so no big deal. I handed him the bottle and made my way to the nearest couch to sit and relax. I have never felt comfortable at parties, but I do at John and Robin”°Ã¢”šÂ¬Ã¢”žÂ¢s. Lori and her children helped with Sydney and I played horsey, doggie, kitty with Sage. This consisted of me following Sage to each animal over and over again for three hours. John limped down the driveway toward the light brown shed with an interested partygoer. Sage peered through the cracks in the gate that held Budley and I listened as John described his new bike. “°Ã¢”šÂ¬Ã…”It”°Ã¢”šÂ¬Ã¢”žÂ¢s got an R-1 engine in it. It sits up higher than an R-1 and is easier to control in tight turns. If you get out of control in a turn in an R-1 then that”°Ã¢”šÂ¬Ã¢”žÂ¢s trouble. On this bike you can gas your way out of it.”°Ã¢”šÂ¬Â I explained my crazy idea of wanting to go in slow and out of a turn slow. I remembered back to races on cold dark nights. The gas, oil and dirt smell, the clumps that would reach you in the stands in turn four, and the rocket launch starts precariously lit by high school stadium lights. There was no slowing down into a turn, no letting go of the gas. There was only the light wrist twist of a trained surgeon keeping the back end from winning its fight to break free. Being a mortal, I was as always, in awe. The night appeared out of nowhere and Sage was asleep in my arms. I saw John sitting alone on the right side of the pillow couch, so I lumbered over to sit next to him. “°Ã¢”šÂ¬Ã…”Did you get used to the couch?”°Ã¢”šÂ¬Â I asked. “°Ã¢”šÂ¬Ã…”Yes, actually I did.”°Ã¢”šÂ¬Â He said in a voice that was sincere and happy. He complimented my kids and me being a good father. We talked about his surgery and how I might need it because my hip was compensating for my knee and really hurting after a trip to Disneyland with Sage. I was sure we would have many in depth science discussions about that and many other topics. Maybe they would be while the NASA channel was playing in the background. I could hear Sydney crying and Sage said “°Ã¢”šÂ¬Ã…”sister crying.”°Ã¢”šÂ¬Â I jumped up and said “°Ã¢”šÂ¬Ã…”Duty calls.”°Ã¢”šÂ¬Â I grabbed the presents Robin and John had given my
Anonymous says:
May 21, 2008
I has been my Extreme pleasure of being on a life experience with John Bruce Matherson. Lovingly called Little John for well over 27 yrs.
Little John wasn’t that large in size except for his heart, it was huge.
In the beginning he was my boss became my friend and roomate. Our friendship grew to the point that he invited me to his Mothers home for dinner and it was always open. We then got to know his Brother Bill and Sisters, Betty and Becky.We considered ourself like a brother.
We became very very tight.
I remember when he was lucky enough to meet the love of his life Blondie, wow what a girl I told John, good looks and she rides bikes, likes to get dirty and play in the dirt Yea Baby a racers deam. On top of that, she is really a heart breaker both inside and out John was truely a very lucky man.
Being Johns Friend I was happy for John when Blondie entered his life because he worked and raced and really that was his main interested and something was lacking in his life. When Blondie entered his life that all changed and Blondie filled that void. John became even better, well rounded and off to the races, with a family and a new business. Blondie is a very Smart Lady she let John be John and I love her for that Nothing with Little John was broken. And if it’s not broken don’t fix it right.
The first Store was very small by today Standards. All of Johns Employees built the inside by hand. There was no money for hiring a contractor. That is when I had the pleasure of meeting Bill Matherson Johns Father. He worked hard, was a good drinking and loved to dance to Swing Music with Blondie. In the Mood. John loved his Father to the max.
So we were all building walls, putting in lifts and doing electrical we did it all everything
from top to bottom. We all loved the place because Little John and Blondie made it that feel that way for all of us. It was a great feeling to be a part of building the business.
FROM A HUMBLE BEGINNINGS TO WHAT YOU SEE TODAY A SERIOUS MAJOR PLAYER AS IT IS TODAY.
John loved life and working really living it every day to the fullest.
Racing was one of his loves to watch him go around a track was fantastic for me. 100 miles per hour plus at Ascot Park around an oval track with a steel shoe and no breaks.
Around the turns handle bar to handle bar. TRY THAT SOME TIME, he also loved road racing and sidecars he use to say it was easy for him and his Brother Bill. After flat tracking,Side Cars were a piece of cake, lol what a guy. In the end they both became World Champs on Side Cars.
THESE GUYS WERE NOT CRAZY THEY WERE JUST PLAN GOOD.
I really thought John was crazy until I learn that he was in control and really was on top of his game. He changed when he would get into his gear. From nice easy going John to Racing John his eyes would zero in and you could see him get into the grove of racing 100%
Service and helping clients with bikes and doing what he loved. Solving Problems.
But John was more then that. Here is an example from a friend of Johns they met 10 yrs ago.
Little John and Blondie were coming out or a Resturant,here is this gentlemen kicking and kicking on his classic bike. John could have walk right on by and kept on enjoying his evening.
No not Little John he stops and say hello I am John, John Matherson I own the store down on that corner Mission Motorsports.
Let me have a look at your bike. Little Johns checks the carb and gets on the bike. Kicking it over five or six time and it roars to life, black smoke pouring out the pipes. Your all wondering what it was right, it turned out to be loaded up with fuel.
Racing and working and making friends. It was easy for him he loved it.
Little John is the type of person if your lucky really lucky you get to meet one time in your life.I was lucky.
Little John’s Son’s, John and Jim have with John and Robins help become men of Quality. They have worked hard and have had nothing handed to them on a Silver Platter. They worked for it. I am very proud of Little
Ada Cho says:
May 22, 2008
Robin, Lori, & family,
I was so shocked and saddened at the news of John’s passing. The first thing that came to mind was you Robin because I knew how much you loved and cherished each other. I can remember the days when John used to come into the bank. I always acknowledged him as “Bruce” and he did not like that. But I continued to harrass him by saying Bruce even louder which brought out a big smile and jokes. I never saw John with a frown on his face. He always had a smile, especially when he brought in those rolled quarters to exhange for dollar bills!! My son Connor who is 10 also remembered John. Connor got the privilege of meeting John at Mission Yamaha’s groundbreaking event in Irvine. John was in his Hummer having fun with the kids. I remember my son telling me, “He’s a cool dude Mom.” Robin,
I know there aren’t words that I can say that will take away the hurt you are feeling. All I know is that John is looking after his Blondie from heaven. I love you guys with all my heart.
Barbara Lorenz says:
May 22, 2008
Robin,
When I heard of John’s passing, I was so shocked and I thought immediately of all his kindness and wonderful sense of humor. He always referred to you with the greatest affection whenever he spoke of Blondie. I know you will be lost without him. I guess the only consolation is that he died as HE might have chosen if given the choice….just way too soon! John touched so many lives with his positive attitude and passion for life. He will be sorely missed on this earth. I am happy to have known him and thankful that you have a loving family with you at this very difficult time.
My best to you, Robin.
Barbara Lorenz
Brad Baltzell says:
May 22, 2008
Excellent Obituary!
What a wonderful man. He always kept everybody laughing. I’ll always remember the “Crawdad Fest”.