Realtor Matthews dies

Stephen Curran

Tuesday, June 18, 2002 | 9:27 a.m.

Services will be held Wednesday for a prominent Las Vegas Realtor who saw Clark County grow from a desert crossroads to a thriving metropolitan area of more than 1 million people.

Real estate executive Jack E. Matthews, 73, died Friday after a long illness.

Matthews was born Oct. 29, 1928, in El Paso, Texas. He served in the U.S. Navy before graduating from Los Angeles City College in 1951.

A job with a San Jose, Calif.- based savings and loan brought Matthews to Las Vegas in the late 1960s. Shortly after coming to Las Vegas to help open a First Western Savings and Loan office, Matthews recognized the city's unique real estate potential and studied to become a Realtor.

He opened his own firm, Jack Matthews & Co., in 1969. The firm later grew to employ more than 700 real-estate agents in its nine branches in the Las Vegas Valley and two offices in Reno.

Matthews became active in the community, serving as president of the Las Vegas Board of Realtors and being named to the Greater Las Vegas Association of Realtors Hall of Fame. A former college athlete, Matthews was also active in youth sports, sponsoring numerous Little League teams and serving as the American Legion's baseball chairman in 1972.

Colleagues remembered Matthews as a mentor to many area newcomers. Joanne Levy, broker-owner of Levy Realty, called Matthews "a real estate icon."

It was kindness that Ronda Matthews, his wife of eight years, said was his most endearing quality.

"He was the kind of man who took care of everyone," she said. "He was a businessman, but he was also the first to visit someone or to donate anything."

Matthews is survived by his wife Ronda; sons Jon and David; daughter, Viktoria, granddaughter Kasey; grandson Jeffrey and great-grandson Matthew, all of Las Vegas.

Visitation is scheduled 4-7 p.m. today in Davis Paradise Valley Funeral Home, 6200 S. Eastern Ave. Funeral services will be held 11 a.m. Wednesday at Community Lutheran Church, 3720 E. Tropicana Ave. Burial will follow at the Southern Nevada Veterans Cemetery in Boulder City.

In lieu of flowers the family asks that donations be made to the Nathan Adelson Hospice, 3391 N. Buffalo Drive, Las Vegas 89129.