Born on January 28, 1986 in Syracuse, Matt Rayo has always called this city his home. Matt’s great-great-grandparents came to Syracuse from Sicily over 100 years ago and Matt is proud of his family’s heritage. Though he is the only child of a single mother, Matt grew up as a part of a large, extended family, most of which continue to live in the Syracuse area.
Matt attended the Gingerbread House Preschool on Syracuse’s North Side and went to Salem Hyde Elementary, a Syracuse City School. He learned the importance of honesty and integrity and the value of hard work as a student at Christian Brothers Academy, graduating with Honors in 2004. He was accepted as a student at the State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry (SUNY-ESF), located in Syracuse, and began his undergraduate studies in the Department of Environmental Biology. While studying at SUNY-ESF, Matt worked in the college’s Business Office in order to earn money to pay toward his tuition. He was also involved in several different student organizations.
Upon graduating magna cum laude with a Bachelor’s Degree in 2008, Matt, along with two friends, began collecting used vegetable oil from local restaurants and processing it into biodiesel fuel. With his educational background, Matt understands the importance of green energy and maintaining a healthy environment. He is excited about the opportunities provided by the recent focus on “green development” in the city of Syracuse and sees great potential in recent efforts to make Syracuse a national model of an environmentally-friendly city. In addition to producing biodiesel, Matt is also employed at Wings, a local restaurant. He currently lives in Syracuse’s Sedgwick neighborhood.