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While she was still in high school, Elizabeth Lopez became so immersed in social activism that she lost sight of her own education. So one of her teachers, University of Utah Honors College lecturer Matthew "Bronco" Bradley, had a heart-to-heart with her about her future.
"I was going to rallies and organizing. I was involved in seven different organizations," said Lopez, now a U. freshman. "Matt sat me down and said, 'You need to take a break from your activism. How are you going to help your community if you don't help yourself by getting an education?'"
Lopez is one of many students whose lives were changed by Bradley, who died Tuesday in an accident. According to his brother Luke, Bradley apparently drowned in a hot tub at his Sandy home, but the official cause of death will be determined by an autopsy.
Bradley inspired numerous youths from Utah's Latino and Pacific Islander communities to pursue an education, according to friends and students.
"He really connected with the students and was all about helping the community and giving back," said Lopez, who took humanities classes while attending the Academy of Math, Engineering and Science, a university-affiliated charter school better known as AMES. "I can't even wrap my head around it that he's gone. He went through cancer and beat it."
Doctors amputated Bradley's right foot quickly after a cancer diagnosis in 2010, but the disease didn't dampen his passion for cycling. He continued competing and commuting on two wheels with the help of a prosthesis.
U. honors dean Sylvia Torti characterized Bradley's death as "a tragic loss for the university and the students."
For the Bradley family, of Sandy, Matt's death was the second devastating loss in less than two years. In 2010, Matt Bradley organized a fundraising event in memory of his sister-in-law Bunny Bradley, who was struck and killed while cycling in Draper.
"That sums up Matt. His whole life was dedicated to serving others, whether it was his students, his community or his family. He had a special gift for connecting with students and helping them realize their potential," said Luke, Bunny's husband. Matt was not married and had no children.
Bradley's cycling friends sponsored a group ride in his honor Wednesday, while his students planned to gather at the Mestizo Coffeehouse for a vigil. He was once co-director of the Mestizo Institute of Culture & Arts, one of many community organizations to which he gave his energy and time, and helped start its arts and activism program. He also worked with Spy Hop Productions, where he guided high school students on a documentary film, titled Auhia Kae Kaisu Pe: A Journey Against the Tides, following their efforts to connect with their Pacific Island heritage.
At the time of his death Bradley co-directed the Honors College's Social Scholars Justice program with longtime friend Anapesi Ka'ili, a doctoral student in culture, education and society.
"He was completely committed to the work of social justice in so may ways," Ka'ili said.
Bradley held an undergraduate degree in English from Brigham Young University, and later earned a graduate degree in culture, education and society at the U. and a doctorate in folklore at Indiana University.