Why this site exists
I registered matthewgwinn.com years ago, back when I was deep into photography. I used it to show my work and pick up a little paid portrait work to help cover the gear I kept buying. Eventually that ended, but I kept the domain so I could keep the email.
So why bring it back now, in the fall of 2026? Partly because I’ve always had some creative outlet in my life, even when I wasn’t very good at it: photography, writing, painting, guitar. These days a lot of that energy goes into the farm. The other part is that I’m older now. I can see I have a role in mentoring a younger generation and passing on what I’ve learned over the years, at work, at church, and in the community.
I’m honestly not sure yet what this will become. It may turn into a place for my writing and the things I care about. It may end up being mostly a place for me to work through ideas. Either way, I’m glad to have it back.
Family
Family comes first. Deane and I have been married a long time, and our daughter, Katie, is a big part of our lives. Most of what I build, at home or anywhere else, starts with them.
Home is a small homestead called Dirty Dog Farm, named for our one very dirty dog. We share it with three cats, some chickens, and a couple of hives of bees.
Church
At church I share in the work of shepherding: caring for people, helping them grow, and mentoring the next generation.
Work
At heart I’m a problem solver and a builder and creator: of equipment, processes, whatever is needed to reach the end goal. I think and work in and across systems, a skill I’ve developed over many years and one I want to share with others.
AI
AI has crashed into the world, especially over the last year. It fascinates me partly because the technology is fascinating, but mostly because I love tools that let me leverage what God has given me to do more and create more. I use AI unabashedly to help build this website, including this page. AI is changing the world at an ever-advancing pace, and I’m excited about the possibilities. I’m a pretty advanced user and an advocate of it, and I’ll talk about it here because of that. We are living in the best time to be alive ever. AI helps me savor that reality.
Related pages
- Bethany Bible Chapel — My church home in Winchendon. It’s where I serve as an elder and do most of the shepherding and mentoring I wrote about above.
- North Central Collective — A group of churches in our region working together. The Chapel is part of it, and so am I.
- NCC Sunday Morning Planner — An online tool I built for NCC churches to develop and maintain their own strategic ministry plans.
- Gwinn Papers — An archive of 19th-century Gwinn family letters and documents. I publish and keep that work going.