Murder Matters, created by renowned craftsman Tommy MacDonald and his wife Rachel, features families of unsolved murder victims in America. Murder Matters celebrates the lives of each victim through a wide variety of DIY projects, either left undone by the victim or for their family’s needs. The heart of the series is the unique projects which put families and friends to work together. Working on a personal project creates opportunities for these individuals to tell stories of their lost loved ones and talk about the devastating effects of an unsolved murder. Episodes will also include the facts of each case explained by law enforcement agents and will close with the tip line for the proper authorities. Our objective is to humanize victims and let families know their murdered loved ones are not forgotten.
The Series Inspiration - Grace's Story
The inspiration behind Murder Matters was the tragedy surrounding Tommy’s older sister Grace. She was murdered in November of 1990, and her killer remains at large.
Tommy grew up in the greater Boston area, the eighth of nine kids. Tommy’s earliest education using tools started with his father and attending a voc-tech high school, which led to a 4-year union carpentry apprenticeship program. In 1999 he was accepted at the North Bennet Street School, an internationally renowned craft and trade school, where he honed his woodworking skills. It led to a chance meeting with Bob Vila, who featured Tommy and his work on national TV in his Colonial Home project and later invited Tommy to create a woodworking series called The Rough Cut Show on his site.
Tommy’s big break came in 2010 when he hit the airwaves internationally as the co-creator, co-executive producer, designer, builder and host of the series Rough Cut – Woodworking with Tommy Mac. The show was an instant success and ran for seven seasons, accruing five Emmy Nominations and close to a dozen Telly Awards along the way.
Rachel R. MacDonald shares with Tommy her passion for creation and helping others. She is a talented artist, formally trained in fine art with a concentration in sculpture and painting at the Art Institute of Boston at Lesley University, where she holds a Bachelors degree. During her time at the art institute, Rachel spent time in Florence, Italy studying art restoration under the renowned restorer, Lorenzo Casamenti. Upon graduation, Rachel went to work as an art instructor and administrator at a local nonprofit arts and education center. She later went on to develop a nonprofit art outreach program, in collaboration with her grandfather, that served at risk children in the Brockton area of Massachusetts. Rachel also spent thirteen years as a personal trainer, working with special populations through adaptive exercise and helping clients with strength and weight loss goals. Rachel is dedicated to advocating for homicide victims through Murder Matters.