Malibu resident Matthew Lawrence Awbrey passed away last Friday, October 24. He was 20 years old and a 2015 Malibu High School graduate. He was an adventurer and advocate who loved the ocean and Malibu.
Matthew attended Our Lady of Malibu and Malibu Presbyterian pre-schools, then Webster Elementary and Malibu High where he was active in many sports including the surf team, water polo, swim team and golf team. Matthew was a Junior Lifeguard, a Malibu Makos surf instructor and he achieved a black belt with Joey Escobar. He played on many Malibu sports teams including baseball from T-ball to the Majors.
Matthew’s first love was surfing. He was a true waterman. At a young age he was surfing and competing in Malibu and his mother, Gigi drove him from Santa Cruz to San Diego to find the big waves and participate in contests. He surfed in Hawaii and Costa Rica and he recently lived in Haleiwa, Hawaii where he attended school and surfed two seasons of the big waves of Pipeline and Waimea Bay on the North Shore of Oahu.
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Deep-sea fishing, free-diving and spearfishing were passions for Matthew. He was an expert at lobstering and finding big halibut in our local waters and he traveled to Alaska on a fishing expedition with his father, Larry and brother Luke.
Matthew was an advocate for nature, animals and sea life. He protested with many First Point surfers in opposition of the Malibu Lagoon restoration and later opposed the proposed removal of sycamore trees and that area. He was also a friend, volunteer and advocate for many of special needs students in Malibu.
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Matthew is survived by his parents Gigi and Larry Awbrey and his brother Luke Awbrey. They encourage everyone to remember Matthew for his adventurous, curious, kind and courageous spirit and they thank the community for all the support.
The service is at Malibu Presbyterian Church this Sunday, November 5 at 4:00 PM and there will be a paddleout at Surfrider Beach the following Sunday, November 12 at 1:00 PM. All the community is invited to both.
