Man who died at Bonnaroo was a UNCA alum; service Saturday ***UPDATED Tuesday 1 p.m.***

Posted on by David Forbes

David Matthew Sloan, 29, of Wilmington, a UNCA alumnus, collapsed and died of heat-related illness at the Bonnaroo festival on Sunday.

Sloan attended UNCA from the Fall of 1999 to Spring 2005, according to university officials, though, contrary to initial reports, he did not graduate.

According to an announcement on Sloan’s Facebook page, there will be a memorial service on Saturday, June 19:

“Matt will be cremated in Nashville and his family plans to return home on Wed. A memorial service will be held on Sat., June 19th at 10 a.m. at Saint Andrews on the Sound in Wilmington, NC. His ashes will be scattered at 4 p.m. on Sat. June 19th at Sander’s Point at Trinity Center in Salter Path, NC. Please consider coming to celebrate Matt—a beautiful spirit that touched so many of us, albeit for too short of a time.”

SHARE

Thanks for reading through to the end…

We share your inclination to get the whole story. For the past 25 years, Xpress has been committed to in-depth, balanced reporting about the greater Asheville area. We want everyone to have access to our stories. That’s a big part of why we've never charged for the paper or put up a paywall.

We’re pretty sure that you know journalism faces big challenges these days. Advertising no longer pays the whole cost. Media outlets around the country are asking their readers to chip in. Xpress needs help, too. We hope you’ll consider signing up to be a member of Xpress. For as little as $5 a month — the cost of a craft beer or kombucha — you can help keep local journalism strong. It only takes a moment.

Before you comment

The comments section is here to provide a platform for civil dialogue on the issues we face together as a local community. Xpress is committed to offering this platform for all voices, but when the tone of the discussion gets nasty or strays off topic, we believe many people choose not to participate. Xpress editors are determined to moderate comments to ensure a constructive interchange is maintained. All comments judged not to be in keeping with the spirit of civil discourse will be removed and repeat violators will be banned. See here for our terms of service. Thank you for being part of this effort to promote respectful discussion.

8 thoughts on “Man who died at Bonnaroo was a UNCA alum; service Saturday ***UPDATED Tuesday 1 p.m.***”

  2. Tracy

    Matt started at UNCA in the fall of 1999. He was a political science major. I don’t know why I’m drawing a blank on his graduation year. approx 2005 I would say.

  3. West Asheville

    I have always wondered why they hold this festival in the hottest part of the year. No shade, 90 degree days, 100K people, alcohol and drugs…just seems like your asking for problems like this. Why not wait till fall or early spring?

  6. James Fisher

    Bonnaroo was truly hot and humid this year – even more so than previous ones I attended. The main reason to hold it in summer,I believe, is because school is out. A huge part of the demographic for most kinds of music is college students, high school even. Shade at Bonnaroo is limited but there are options. People hit the Cinema Tent sometimes just for the shade. 3 of the 5 main stages are covered and some have a handful of large trees very near them. Bonnaroo has also done a great job w/ water: there are several free water stations with cool,fresh,well water. I used these several times a day. Bottom line is that you have to really take extra care of yourself. I don’t know the details about David Sloan,just hate to see such a sad loss for his family and friends.

  8. pugman

    they hold the festival in summer cause of the bands tour dates, its the only time they can get all the bands together, but hell yeah the fall would be awesome to do it in. Plus the amount of people that wouldnt come due to school, best time they know people will be out. And families that take their vacation with there kids out of school.

Leave a Reply

To leave a reply you may Login with your Mountain Xpress account, connect socially or enter your name and e-mail. Your e-mail address will not be published. All fields are required.