Matthew Robert “Chevy” Chiaverotti was born in Austin, Texas, to Gary Chiaverotti and the late Lynn Chiaverotti on October 3, 1978. Matt was a loving and caring family man, leaving behind his wife of 15 years, Sara, and son, Gus.

Captain Chiaverotti was a 20-year decorated and beloved veteran of the Virginia Beach Fire Department. At the time of his passing, Matt’s position was captain of Engine 7, the “Busiest Engine” in the VBFD. Matt was also a search team manager with FEMA Virginia Task Force 2 and had been with the team for 16 years. During his career, Matt had been to thousands of calls to help the citizens of Virginia Beach, including structure fires, hazardous materials incidents, and technical rescue incidents. Most notably, in April 2012, Chevy spent many hours searching for victims when an F-18 jet crashed into an apartment complex in Virginia Beach.

Chevy could be heard saying each day, “Live Life at A 10,” Which he so proudly did. He was passionate about serving our community, and he loved working alongside hard charging firefighters. Matt greatly enjoyed visiting our local elementary schools to share his love of the fire service. It was always his hope that sharing his knowledge and love of firefighting would inspire young people in our community to become firefighters.

During his career, Matt earned the Medal of Honor and Life Saving Award three times. He also earned a Commendation Award and Meritorious Conduct Award. Matt earned the Good Conduct Award four times, and Team Recognition Ribbons for his service on the FEMA team and the Technical Rescue Team.

Matt was on a call one night where a homeless man lost his tent and belongings due to a fire. Matt and his crew pulled up at our house in the fire truck shortly after the call. Matt went up into our attic and gathered a tent, a camping mattress, and clothing which he later gave to the man to replace the items that had been lost in the fire. Matt’s empathy and compassion for all humans was one of a kind.

Matt’s talents went above and beyond being a dutiful firefighter. He could construct and repair just about anything. If he wasn’t sure how to do something, he taught himself. Matt would jump at every opportunity to help friends, family, and colleagues build, repair, and replace just about anything.

Matt’s legacy lives on in our beautiful son who has so much love and energy to share with the world, just as his Daddy did.

All who loved Matt are deeply grieving him and miss him dearly. We continue to strive to make the world a better place just as Chevy did by Living Life at a 10.