'Most caring person ever': Galesburg woman remembered for her passion, work ethic

GALESBURG — Kristin Boyer was in her office when Amanda Matuszyk fell out of the sky and into her lap.

Matuszyk had applied for a job at OSF St. Mary Medical Center in Galesburg but had appeared for her interview at OSF Saint Francis Medical Center in Peoria by mistake. Unsure where to go, she was brought to Boyer who made some calls to help figure out where she needed to be.

The two began talking about Matuszyk’s experience as a certified nurse assistant in Georgia and hit it off.

Boyer said she loved the sound of Matuszyk's southern drawl. Matuszyk asked Boyer, a patient care manager at the hospital, if she had any openings. It just so happened she did.

“When I say she fell out of the sky and into my lap, she really did,” Boyer said.

Health care news:OSF PromptCare clinic to move into former Cottage Hospital. Here's what you can expect

In the over two years, Matuszyk went on to work as a primary care technician at the hospital.

Boyer said Matuszyk distinguished herself with her work ethic and passion. When Boyer went on rounds, patients and their family members frequently identified Matuszyk by name as having gone above and beyond with her care.

“She wanted them to feel like themselves, wanted them to feel human,” Boyer said. “She would be super upset if she would come in and somebody hadn't had a bath in a couple days. That was just her number one priority."

Matuszyk was driving to work when she died Jan. 26 from injuries sustained in a car crash on I-74 near Brimfield, Illinois. She is survived by her husband, parents, five children and three brothers.

‘The most caring person ever’

Matuszyk, 42, was born in Kewanee. She moved to Galesburg about two and a half years ago to be closer to her Illinois relatives after living in Georgia for many years, her daughter Naomi Evans said.

Evans, 21, said her mother was someone who loved anyone and everyone. She never held grudges. And she had an affinity for cows. Matuszyk’s home was filled with cow-themed paraphernalia. Her favorite were the highland cows, on account of their fluffy coats.

“One of my fondest memories of her was every time I went into a store and saw a cow picture, she'd say 'Get it! Get it!' So I'd have to buy a new cow picture every time,” Evans said.

Evans' younger sister, Emma, said her mother was just a very happy person, no matter the situation, and loved to cheer people up. She remembered when she lost her first wrestling match and how her mother comforted her, saying everything was going to be OK, it was just one match.

“My mom was the most caring person ever. She would give anyone the shirt off her back or even her last dollar,” the 17-year-old said.

Naomi Evans, who plans on changing her last name to Matuszyk, said her mom encouraged her dreams of becoming a mechanic by riding around with Evans looking at old cars.

“We would just run around looking at them, and she'd say ‘Man, I'd bet you'd be good at fixing that one,' or 'You'd fix that one up great,” Evans said.

‘She will be missed'

Matuszyk started working in OSF Saint Francis’s step-down care unit in November 2020, Boyer said.

This was a critical care division for patients who had just come out of the adult intensive care unit and were still too sick to go to the general floor.

Boyer remembered Matuszyk once told her about a time when her husband was in the hospital and she overheard two nurses laughing and making jokes about him. That experience only deepened Matuszyk's commitment to be a caregiver.

"She was in it for the right reasons," Boyer said. "She treated every single patient as thought they were like her closest family."

“She talked about it all the time,” Emma Evans said. “There were patients that had left a mark on her and touched her, and she'd come home and tell us about her patients and how much she loved spending time with them. She loved being there. She smiled everyday and never came home upset from her job.”

Boyer said she and eight or 10 other OSF employees who worked with Matuszyk unit joined Matuszyk’s family at her service on Feb. 3 at the Rux Funeral Home in Kewanee. Boyer said the service was heartbreaking, but the hospital staff were glad they were able to attend and that Matuszyk will be very missed.

“We still feel like we're in a fog everyday," Boyer said.

This article originally appeared on Galesburg Register-Mail: Galesburg woman killed in car crash devoted life to caring for others