MADISON, N.C. — A Triad firefighter was laid to rest Thursday after dying in a car crash Christmas morning.
31-year-old Matthew Hall was driving on Bethany Road when he crossed over the center line and hit a tree.
Community members gathered to mourn the loss of the first responder, who is said to have had a huge impact on the community.
Hall's funeral took place at McMichael High, where he went to school.
Dozens of cars and emergency vehicles poured out of the parking lot, joining the procession that took Hall's body to its final resting place at Pine Hall Presbyterian Church Cemetery.
Hall was well known in the emergency services world.
He was a Guilford County firefighter for the Summerfield Fire Department and Assistant Chief of the Madison Rescue Squad.
Many people came out to pay their respects, including Micki Wray and her grandchildren.
"My son is a firefighter. My granddaughter is on the rescue squad. Matt has touched all of their lives, and with the children, I didn't wanna go into the auditorium in there, so we just came to pay our respects here," Wray said.
After the funeral service, loved ones gathered at one of Hall's favorite spots to share memories.
Some of his family members own wine Nox bar in Madison and he was a regular there.
His friend, Mayodan Police Officer Bradley Sweatt, often hung out with him there.
"Matt and I spent several nights here, sitting on barstools and sharing stories about responding to calls and dealing with stuff in town. We would come in here to wind down," Sweatt said. "With him not being here tonight, it’s different. It’s tough. His face was always one of the ones I look for when I’d come to the door."
Hall's sister, Kelsey Holland said the gathering at Wine Nox is the kind of party he would have liked.
"He loved coming in here and cutting up. Playing and joking with family, dancing. They called Magic Matt," Holland said. "It brings us so much joy. I love hearing the stories of how happy he made everybody."
It was a time for healing in one of his favorite places, with the support of each other.
"He was just a good man, we’re gonna miss him he was loved and appreciated by many. He saved a lot of lives, a lot of lives and it’s good could’ve helped him here he would’ve been here forever," Holland said.