Matthew J. Hightower (29) of Lincoln, formerly of Effingham

Matthew L. Hightower, 29, of Lincoln, IL, formerly of Effingham, IL, passed away on Friday, October 7, 2016, at HSHS St. John’s Hospital in Springfield, IL surrounded by his loving family.

A celebration of life for Matthew will be held at 6:00 p.m. Thursday, October 13 at Johnson Funeral Home, 1110 N. Fourth Street, Effingham, with the Rev. Josh Bledsoe officiating. Visitation will be held from 5:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. Thursday prior to the service at Johnson Funeral Home. Memorials may be made in loving memory of Matthew to the Muscular Dystrophy Association.

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Matthew was born on May 7, 1987, in Effingham, IL. Matt was an avid fisherman and was very much into his gaming as well. All those who came into contact with Matt loved him as he did them. He loved getting involved with the MDA, from doing MDA marathons, to raising money for a cure, to camps every summer. He had a large MDA family that he loved dearly. Matt was very passionate about drawing, and had dreams of becoming an artist. Matt was always positive about life, and although life threw many curveballs his way nothing stopped him. Matt was a fighter.

Matt is survived by his mother, Diana (Roger) Delnero-Matyas of St. Elmo; father, Michael (Frances) Hightower of Shelbyville; brother, Aaron Arrasmith of Effingham; half-sister, Alana Hightower; half-brothers, Eric Hightower and Dylan Hightower; grandmother, Edith Allen of Effingham; uncle, Chris (Ana) Arrasmith of Hawaii; aunt, Cindy (Jerry) Meinhart of Dieterich; cousins, Jacob (Stacy) Nelson of Watson, Sarah Nelson of Dieterich, Perry Arrasmith and Nathan Arrasmith both of Hawaii, and Craig (Holly) Neeves of Iowa.

He was preceded in death by his grandfather, Donald Allen; and step-mother, Vicki Hightower.