Matt and Regina fell in love in San Francisco then fell in love with Danville. While living in Pasadena, CA Regina had been spending her weekends commuting up to San Francisco looking for an apartment for her upcoming move. A friend had been helping her in her search and knew of another friend, Matt, who had a spare bedroom he would be willing to rent out. Given Regina only had two days left, she quickly arranged to meet Matt at a restaurant (Solstice in San Francisco) to see if they may be a good fit to be roommates. While it was clear that Matt had an instant connection with Regina, (he says “I knew I was going to marry her that first night we were introduced,”) fate did not bring them to become roommates as the next morning Regina found her perfect apartment in Cow Hollow. “Matt and I laugh thinking about what would have happened if we had become roommates knowing we were interested in each other.”
After her move into her new apartment, Regina and Matt spent about a month getting to know each other and had their first kiss on Union Street. Regina remembers “it was a romantic night. There was thunder, and it hailed so hard in San Francisco that it looked like snow had covered the streets. While Matt was walking me back to my apartment, we had to hold onto each other and the parking meters so we didn’t slide down the sidewalk…that memory still makes us laugh.” Eventually Regina moved into Matt’s condo on California Street, where they lived for 2 years before buying a home in Danville. Just before heading out on a vacation to Mexico, Regina and Matt were having dinner in their new
home. Regina remembers the night well as Matt told her, “home with me is his favorite place to be and he couldn’t think of a better place to ask me to marry him.” The pair were married at Diablo Country Club on 11/11/2011.
Prior to starting their lives together, Matt grew up with the “grit and simplicity of the Pacific Northwest.” He was an
only child and spent his childhood delivering newspapers and exploring his neighborhood, all of which instilled in him
a lifelong appreciation for independence and a strong work ethic. Matt put himself through the Abbers School of Business at Seattle University, earning his degree in Finance and quickly began his career in financial advisory that has now spanned
over a quarter century. His career has spanned from the dot-com era, to the financial crisis, through the present day AI
revolution, bringing a breath of seasoned financial experience. He has a passion for working with families to build, plan and
manage their investments for retirement and beyond. Matt’s “true reward isn’t just managing numbers, it’s building the
trust and relationships necessary to help people turn their aspirations into reality.” He currently works at RBC as a Financial
Advisor, putting his passion into practice for his clients.
Regina grew up in southern California and even though she too was an only child, she was raised in a large and culturally
diverse family with many cousins, “so in a lot of ways it was like having siblings. Large family dinners on Sundays were a
regular event.” Regina also learned the value of hard work, putting herself through college, sometimes working two jobs
while attending classes and eventually earning her BS in Human Services and a MA in Psychology at Phillips Graduate
Institute of Psychology. Regina explains, “although I loved being near my family, I knew one day I wanted to venture out and
explore living somewhere new. Just before I finished graduate school, I visited San Francisco and it felt like home and where
I belonged.” Her professional career began in residential treatment centers, serving as a school educator, a staff trainer and therapist. She also led workshops on child and adolescent mental health and behavioral disorders. This experience
provided essential clinical tools that led her to help launch a new clinical program that partnered with Child and Family Services in Daly City. In 2011 Regina began working for Kaiser as a general therapist in the Mental Health Triage Department. What I enjoy about being a therapist is empowering my clients to discover their own inner strength, helping them work toward becoming the best version of themselves.” Over the years she has developed an interest in working with individuals and couples experiencing infertility and is exploring the idea of opening up a private practice to address the needs of this community.
While both Matt and Regina have had quite successful and dynamic careers, trying to start a family “took a little longer than expected” but they never lost hope. A few years after getting married, the couple planned to spend Thanksgiving in Hawaii, and just two weeks prior had found out they were expecting their son, Quin. We remember hearing his heartbeat for the first time and our doctor saying “Wow, that’s a strong heartbeat.” He started strong and continues to amaze us. Quin is a 4th grader at Montair Elementary School and loves playing soccer, flag football and being active in Cub Scouts. Quin has a great ear for music and has been playing the electric guitar for about two years. He also has a creative mind around building eco-friendly structures and computer science “playing and creating video game worlds.” Quin can also be found cuddling with Watson (a gray tabby cat with 6 toes who enjoys eating and watching birds) and Willow (the family’s Australian Labradoodle who loves walks on the Iron Horse Trail and playing with furry friends at Osage).
The Forrey family has found a love of gardening at home and sharing what they grow with their neighbors. They also love spending their free time hiking on local trails, dining at our favorite Danville restaurants and cheering on the SRV and Seattle Seahawk football teams. A highlight this year was when Matt and Quin attended the 2026 Super Bowl and witnessed the Seahawks defeat the Patriots. Matt can also be found doing early morning workouts at Spenga or golfing at Diablo Country Club. Regina enjoys hiking and being outdoors. Eating dinner together as a family is an important part of the Forreys’ day. “We unplug from our devices and take turns talking about the highs and lows of our day.” Regina loves cooking for her family and sharing family traditions. She has even started teaching Quin some family recipes, such as the traditional Christmas morning tamales. Regina and Matt are looking forward to traveling more as a family. “Last summer we visited parts of Mexico, Honduras and the Bahamas.
We want to continue learning about other cultures and how they live, find peace and happiness, and continue to teach Quin how to appreciate all that we have.” Another family favorite is the Big Island, Hawaii. Matt and Regina fell in love with Kona while they were dating and have made a point to bring Quin to the Big Island since he was a baby. We have enjoyed snorkeling as a family and appreciate the ocean and island culture. They also enjoy visiting Matt’s family in Seattle where they “go out on the boat and fish, or release Salmon into the ladder to
help restore the Salmon population.” But ultimately coming back home to Danville brings them the most joy. They knew they wanted a safe place to raise a family and Westside Danville “with its small town feel, friendly neighbors and good schools” certainly fits the bill. Their home is on a cul de sac and the Forreys enjoy the potluck parties on Halloween, a neighborhood where all our children can play together, and “cherish the value of knowing our neighbors.” Both Matt and Regina are active in the Montair school community. Matt participates in the Montiar’s Dad’s Club helping with outdoor projects, pancakes breakfasts and donuts for the kids. Regina can be found volunteering in the classroom, helping with art projects and also playing an active role in planning Montair’s Annual Auction. At the end of the day, the Forrey family motto is an important reminder for the whole community: Self Acceptance. “Be Thankful for who we are and all that we have. Live life with an open heart and open mind. We try our best…mistakes happen, but it’s what we learn from the mistakes that matters.”
By Anne Angstenberger, Resident since 2006
Photos provided by the Forrey family