WHITE PLAINS, NY –Rev. Matthew H. Gates Rev. Matthew H. Gates, age 94, passed away peacefully on August 11th at the Witham Hospital in Lebanon, IN. “Matty”, as his friends called him, spent many happy years as a resident of Sun City and the Seabrook. He was born in Albany N.Y, raised in Meriden CT, graduated from Ohio Wesleyan University and Yale University Divinity School. “Matty” was ordained as a minister in the United Methodist Church, New York Conference. He served parishes in Derby and Naugatuck, CT., and New Rochelle, NY. The last 12 years of his career were spent as District Superintendent and ultimately as Council Program Director until his retirement to Cape Cod in 1985. “Matty” was an avid tennis player. He enjoyed ballroom dancing with his wife Alice, who pre-deceased him in 2012, and he traveled the world on a multitude of cruise ships serving as chaplain. During the course of his ministry he was intimately involved in the Civil Rights movement and marched on Washington with Dr. Martin Luther King. He protested Apartheid, worked hard at getting safe and affordable low income housing built, and created opportunities for ecumenical living room dialogs bringing awareness and tolerance among people of many faiths. He is survived by his three children: Matthew H. Gates Jr and his wife Barbara of Bluffton, SC, Clark R. Gates and his wife Barbara of Tucson, AZ, and Melissa Gates of Buxton, ME. “Matty” had four grandchildren and nine great grandchildren. A memorial service will be held at the Craigville Tabernacle in Centerville, Cape Cod, MA, Monday August 31, 2015. Interment will be at the Hillside Cemetery in Osterville, MA.
