When Mathew Lehosit was a teenager attending Notre Dame High School, his biggest passion lied in the fantasy worlds of the novels, comic books, and cartoons that he consumed, where superheroes would battle injustices of the world, vampires and mutants could be seen as more than the sum of their circumstance, and wizards would cast spells in his imagination. Little did he know at the time that this passion would lead him to work as a key stakeholder in the global entertainment industry, helping to usher a new era of cartoon heroes into the lives of children and fans.

Matthew is the son of Roger Lehosit- NDHS Class of ‘71& Irish Legends Recipient -and Suzi Lehosit, founders of MCM Business Systems in Nutter Fort, WV. The youngest of 3, all NDHS graduates – Michael Lehosit, Class of ‘96 and Cyndi Lehosit, Class of ’97 – Matthew attended St. Mary’s Elementary School and graduated Salutatorian from Notre Dame High School in 1999, where he was active in Student Body Government, National Honors Society, Key Club, and attended Governor’s Honors Academy. He went on to study Advertising at West Virginia University where he graduated Magna Cum Laude and as the Top Scholar of his graduating class in 2004.

Unsure of how his post-college life would unfold, Matthew decided to search the job listings at Turner Entertainment while watching Cartoon Network (his favorite channel) one evening, where he sought out an internship opportunity that would bring him to Atlanta in 2005 to work for the famed brand. 14 years later, Matthew still works at Cartoon Network as Director of Marketing where he leads strategic planning across a wide array of emerging and beloved brands including The PowerPuff Girls, Steven Universe, Ben 10, and Adventure Time. Together with his team, they work across all areas of business as the arrow to ensure everyone is working toward the same strategic bull’s-eye. In his tenure, Lehosit has worked on global campaigns, executed events such as Comic Cons, The Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, SXSW, Pop-Up shops and more, been published as a writer for DC Comics, and been honored as a Rising Brand Star by AdWeek.

2019 marks 20 years since graduating from Notre Dame High School. He is humbled and honored to return as a distinguished alumnus, joining the ranks of others he deeply admires for their achievements. He dedicates this honor to the memory of his brother Michael Lehosit, and the rest of his family Roger, Suzi, and Cyndi, whose love and support he credits to his achievements.

Matthew will receive the award at the Irish Legends Gala on April 13.