Kerri Conner Matchett, accountant, tireless breast cancer awareness advocate, and ‘boss lady,’ has died at 48
She published a book on talking to children about cancer and inspired countless others with her courage, stamina, and willingness to confront the disease head-on. "She was my hero," her mother said.
Kerri Conner Matchett, 48, of Jenkintown, partner and head of accounting at Anita T. Conner & Associates, tireless and fervent advocate for breast cancer awareness, and, in her own words, “mommy of three, boss lady,” died Monday, Dec. 5, of metastatic breast cancer at her home.
Born and raised in Abington, Mrs. Conner Matchett worked with her mother, Anita Conner, at their certified public accounting and financial services firm for more than 20 years. They called themselves the Tax Divas and said in an online profile that their business philosophy is: “If I help others grow, I will grow.”
Mrs. Conner Matchett was first diagnosed with stage 3 breast cancer in 2008, and she immediately expanded her business philosophy to include the changes in her personal life. She underwent surgery, received countless treatments, eventually returned to work, and she and her mother, also a breast cancer survivor, embarked on a roller-coaster cancer awareness effort designed to help others benefit from their experiences.
They poured more resources into Praise Is the Cure, a nonprofit for breast cancer awareness and support they founded in 2006, and Mrs. Conner Matchett published My Mommy Has Breast Cancer, But She Is OK! in 2010. The book details how she and her young daughter Madison confronted her disease, and a reviewer said: “Her light treatment on the subject is akin to the brush of a butterfly’s wing. ... This story refreshes the soul.”
In 2017, the disease reappeared as stage 4 metastatic breast cancer, and Mrs. Conner Matchett, to the surprise of no one who knew her, doubled down on both battling her own illness and imploring others to have screenings and support research into a cure. She appeared on radio, TV, and online shows, spoke at countless public appearances, and gave lengthy interviews to anyone who asked about the need for cancer research, support for cancer survivors and their families, and her own story.
In 2018, she was the subject of an article for The Inquirer titled “When her breast cancer returned, she had to tell the kids. Here’s what happened.” In that story, she said: “While sitting with me in the hospital, my husband asked, ‘What are we going to tell the kids?’ I replied without hesitation: ‘The truth.’”
In May, she and her mother appeared on “Inquirer Live: Cancer Care for All,” and they discussed how lessons learned during the COVID-19 pandemic could result in more equitable health care for Black women in the post-pandemic world. She also talked then about how the earlier clinical trials in which her mother participated benefited younger women like her.
“She was my hero,” her mother said. “Despite everything she went through, she kept pressing forward, looking for ways to help other people.”
» READ MORE: When her breast cancer returned, she had to tell the kids. Here’s what happened.
Born Nov. 23, 1974, Kerri Marie Conner graduated from Abington High School, earned a bachelor’s degree in accounting from Howard University in 1996, and became a certified public accountant in 2000. She met Steven Miles Matchett at a social event at the Navy Yard in 2000, and they married in 2010.
With their three children, daughters Madison and Haniyah and son James, they lived in Jenkintown and thrived, her husband said, because “she was the epitome of selflessness.”
Mrs. Conner Matchett was skilled at making crafts, and her homemade Christmas decorations remain the talk of the family. She loved to make Christmas cookies, and she asked to return home from the hospital shortly before her death so she could be surrounded by family and friends as the holiday approached.
She won awards for her activism, served on several boards, taught classes in finance and accounting at Penn State Abington, and was inducted into the McKinley Elementary School Hall of Fame in 2016 for service to her community.
» READ MORE: How COVID is helping us move away from white-centered clinical trials to reach more patients
She said her favorite book was Dr. Seuss’ Oh, the Places You’ll Go! and, despite her illness, she and her husband traveled over the years to Jamaica, Costa Rica, Martha’s Vineyard, the Jersey Shore, and his boyhood home in Miami. She refused, her husband said, to complain about losing her hair and the many setbacks she endured during her years of treatment.
“She focused on what she could do,” he said. In a tribute, a friend said: “Kerri always had a smile on her face and a positive outlook on life despite her circumstances. I will miss her love, compassion, and bright spirit.”
In her 2018 story in The Inquirer, Mrs. Conner Matchett said that of everything she learned from her illness, her connections with family and friends were the most important.
“When looking back at what I have gone through, I can honestly say I would not have made it this far without my family,” she said. “I used them as a source of strength on the days I thought I just would not make it. One day, I hope my children can use me and this journey as a source of strength to get through their hard times as well.”
Her husband said: “She never feared the cancer. She had the will to live a purposeful life.”
In addition to her husband, children, and mother, Mrs. Conner Matchett is survived by her father, John Conner Sr., brother John Conner Jr., and other relatives.
A celebration of her life is to be held at 10 a.m. Thursday, Dec. 15, at Salem Baptist Church of Abington, 2741 Woodland Ave., Abington, Pa. 19001. Guests are welcome from 8 to 9 a.m., and a service by her Delta Sigma Theta Omega Omega friends is scheduled for 9 a.m.
Donations in her name may be made to Praise Is the Cure, 766 Old York Rd., Jenkintown, Pa. 19046.