Mathew Joseph Roach

Mathew J. Roach, age 88, passed away on March 14, 2026, in Bayfield, Colorado. He was born on August 9, 1937, in McCamey, Texas, the youngest of five children. Mathew and Peggy Rhoden were married on October 13, 1956, in Amarillo, Texas. Shortly thereafter, they moved to Albuquerque, New Mexico, where Matt began a nearly 50-year career at Sandia National Laboratories. Following his retirement, he continued working for a time with Valcom, also in Albuquerque. 

During the Cold War, on his drafting board, Matt drew components and experiments for the Department of Defense's nuclear program, which played a major role in deterring the Soviet Union from attacking the United States. Matt enjoyed hunting and fishing and was a devoted patriot who loved the United States of America. His loyalty to his country was evident both in his work and in how he lived his life at home. Matt grew up in a ranching family. His parents were cattle and goat ranchers who moved frequently throughout Texas and eastern New Mexico while the children were young. At one point, they lived in a small shack in the Big Bend area that had dirt floors. 

His mother, Fairel Roach, was known for her toughness and independence. She could ride, shoot, and hunt, and on cattle drives cooked for as many as twenty ranch hands, preparing chicken-fried steak, biscuits, and gravy over an open fire. Even after moving to a neighborhood in Albuquerque, she continued to grow fruits and vegetables and canned what the family did not eat. As the youngest sibling, Matt was pampered by his older sisters and toughened by his older brothers, who nicknamed him "Little Red" because of his hair color. From a young age, he had his own horse and often rode out alone across the ranch searching for arrowheads. At age five, he proudly roped a pig from the rails of a corral. The pig jumped the fence and dragged young Matt through the brush and rocks for nearly a hundred yards, leaving him scraped and bruised, but with a story he would laugh about for the rest of his life.

Matt helped provide for the family by hunting birds near the ranch and bringing home dove and pheasant for dinner. Even as a boy, Matt was a great shot with a rifle, a pistol, a shotgun, or a muzzleloader. He was a good archer, too, often hunting with his bow. Although much of his schooling was unconventional due to frequent moves, Matt proved naturally intelligent and highly analytical. His drafting and mechanical illustration skills became widely respected. Though he did not hold an engineering degree, he often trained engineers who had the degree but lacked his practical troubleshooting instincts.

In junior high, Matt developed a crush on his English teacher, Patsy L. Orenduff (Roach). Knowing he was too young for her, he introduced her to his older brother Henry at Matt's junior high Halloween dance. They hit it off immediately and were married just three weeks later, on November 22. During his teenage years, Matt moved to Amarillo, Texas. While playing ping-pong at a local community center, he met and played against Peggy Rhoden, who was quick, crafty, cute and funny. After meeting her, he told his mother he would one day marry that girl.

The two did not begin dating seriously until later in high school. When Matt realized another boy had a crush on Peggy, he challenged him to a fistfight for her. But as with the pig, Matt was punching up a class or two. He got in some good licks but promptly took a fierce jab that knocked out his four front teeth. Peggy, impressed by his passion and perhaps feeling a little sorry for him, agreed to go on a first date. Soon after graduation, Matt proposed, and they were married on October 13, 1956. On their honeymoon to Colorado and New Mexico, Matt stopped by Sandia Labs and interviewed for a job his sister, Jean, had told him about: an entry-level draftsman position. 

Notably, during the 60's and 70's, even while helping Peggy raise four kids, Matt had a Top-Secret Clearance at Sandia, often flew from Kirtland base to the Nevada Test Site, then entered underground tunnels to install his experiments designed to measure forces and radiation from the nuclear blasts. After each "shot", he would return to the highly radioactive tunnels, retrieve his glowing devices, and deliver them to the scientists and PhDs at Sandia in Albuquerque by the end of the week. Unfortunately, the old estimates for maximum safe exposure to radiation were high, and Matt received enough radiation to cost him his health later in life. While they raised their kids, Matt instilled in his four kids a love of nature and camping, and passed on his hard-won knowledge of hunting and fishing, gun safety, and marksmanship.

Matt devoted many hours to coaching youth sports. He coached his sons in football and was active in the YAFL and the Eldorado High School Booster Club. Matt and Peggy rarely missed an opportunity to watch their boys play football or baseball or to watch their young daughter cheer and run track. They were regulars at Eldorado Eagles football games and could often be found supporting Roadrunner Little League baseball.

Both Matt and Peggy also supported their daughter's baton twirling and track activities with the Duke City Dashers. After the kids were grown and the Cold War was over, Matt went on to work on energy and space projects for Sandia. He designed a braking system still used on all those lovely giant wind turbines we see in deserts and oceans today. He also designed lasertag style modifications for normal rifles and guns, to help train soldiers and law enforcement, during terrorist attack simulations, to protect nuclear facilities and stockpiles. And he designed a box that's still on the moon, reflecting lasers back to Earth to measure lunar travel. The device was expected to last only weeks or months, but it kept transmitting for years. Matt loved telling that story and took pride in knowing a small part of his work was still sitting on the moon. Matt lived a long and wonderful life with his amazing wife, Peggy, their good friends at work and home, and many offspring.

He was the proud grandfather of ten grandchildren: Justin T. Dickey; Marshall L. Roach (Bethany); Kaelin Roach (Ben Nance); Jackson W. Roach; Sam R. Roach; Amy A. Roach; Cody W. Roach (Starr); Ainsley C. McElwee; and Alexandra J. McElwee. 

He was precededin death by his grandson, Aaron S. Dickey.

Mathew was also the proud great-grandfather of four great-grandchildren: Wilder Roach, Verona Roach, Hazel Nance, and Estella Roach.

Funeral services will be held at French Funerals & Cremations - Wyoming in

Albuquerque, New Mexico. A reception will follow the service.