Matt Carr

It is amazing how many “heroes” we have in our own community and we aren’t even aware of it! GNPSD will be featuring some of these men and women. These are the people who have quietly albeit greatly impacted our communities without even being noticed.

“I’m just one of the guy.. a tank cleaner trying to do my part.” Matt Carr’s humble statement truly symbolizes the man that he is. Owner of Cal Marine Cleaning (Parent company of Washington Marine Cleaning, LLC., Alaska Marine Cleaning, LLC., and Hawaii Marine Cleaning Inc.) Matt grew up a local San Diegan and decided that there wasn’t any place better to base a business, invest in community, and raise a family.

Despite the downturn in economy Cal Marine Cleaning continues to thrive. Matt has been able to make money and give employees a stable place to work. The investments that he makes in his business ultimately have been an investment into the local community. Whether it be financially providing for families through jobs or by donating money to local non-profits and participating in community meetings, Matt has turned his financial blessing into a blessing for others.

Matt didn’t have anything handed to him, he came from humble beginnings. Matt worked and worked hard for what he has today. When he graduated from high school his dad asked him to get a job at Pepper Industries. This was his introduction to tank cleaning. He had no idea what he was getting into. The first night he worked a 12-hour shift. Matt continued there until he began working for Commercial Cleaning Corp. In 1985 they went bankrupt. He was thirty years old and couldn’t get a job on the waterfront. Although things looked pretty bad at this point, Matt’s life was getting ready to take an amazing turn that would change his entire future.

Matt got an offer from a friend running a project in Hawaii and took it up. One day Matt flew to Hawaii bankrupt and 6 months later he made 1/2 million dollars running his business out of a hotel room. From there Matt came back to San Diego and developed his business further. In 1990 he bought out his partner.

Now Matt supervises 250 people in 3 states. “This far exceeds my wildest dreams of where I would be in business,” Stated Matt. He went on to explain that it was possible only because he has good people who work for the company. Matt has been a leader in our community, sometimes offering people jobs that might otherwise be unemployable. “I want to give people a second chance in life. Some of my employees go from a halfway house to making a house payment.”

Matt has also been a contributor to the Good Neighbor Project of San Diego; which takes children and their families out and teaches them to fish. This project wouldn’t be possible without his participation. All these things make Matt Carr one of the Good Neighbor Project of San Diego’s “Local Heroes”.