In his uncle Kim’s words:
“You came into our life on 8th February 1980, the first time I met you, you were just a few hours old. My sister and Alan’s first born, my parents first grandchild, my first nephew. What a positive impact you had, breathing joy into our family. This wonderful baby boy had us all mesmerised from day one. That day I held you in my arms and gently stroked your ear and told you I love you.”
Some words and thoughts from Alan Lynn and Amy:
Andrew was a gorgeous baby with beautiful brown eyes and golden blonde hair. He then hit puberty…and grew into a gentle giant. As all teenager boys are, he was untidy and left homework until the last minute and somehow he never grew out of this, but he got things done -eventually. Typically, he would get us all last minute presents from Amazon and if you were very lucky he would print off a homemade card and sometimes print wrapping paper, disappearing upstairs while we all waited for him.
He was a typical brother, tormenting his sister in their younger years but as an adult loved spending quality time with family and admired the way Amy and Mark bought up Ollie.
He Introduced Ollie to his love of cars by buying him his first one - an electric Mini that had to be dismantled in the car park, squeezing it in the car before the drive back from Toys R Us. Then they assembled it in the garden.
He made great friends along the way and chose his own path. Leaving school he went to work in the family business, proving himself a quick learner with a practical mind just like his gramps.
He decided to do an IT course to build on his interest in computing and quickly realised this would be something he was good at and enjoyed. His friend Chris helped him secure his first IT job at Broad systems where he won his first award – an Oscar from Rupert Murdoch - a trend that continued throughout his career when only 18 months ago he won a prestigious award at Rackspace and was given use of the company Aston Martin for a week.
He worked hard, on call for many nights and weekends with no time for a social life or hobbies, but he knew that it would eventually lead to better things. One job in Finchley involved long journeys in his beloved BMW through all the London traffic. He took that time to make phone calls and rang us most nights on his way home. He sometimes popped into see gramps – sharing dumplings together for dinner. All this led to a job at Rackspace, a job he had aspired to for some time, again, following Chris. He truly felt embraced by the Rackspace family and enjoyed telling us about the events of the day. They have offered more support than you could imagine during this last difficult year and we thank them all from the bottom of our hearts.
He was a caring grandson to nana Vicky, supporting her when unwell and taking her to Nandos where she let everyone know in a loud voice “I don’t like spicy” which made us all laugh and writing kind words to her when she lost her brother. He enjoyed her sausage casseroles and shepherds pies that she cooked for us during the last year. We also had meals and treats from Auntie Jan, friends and neighbours, all so kind.
Andy was a unique person making lifelong friends wherever he went. Loyal, reliable, generous, warm, loving, humorous, considerate, selfless; always willing to help others. Someone you could rely on in a crisis who you knew would keep your confidences. His core group of friends Paul, Luke, Jamie, Al and Chris who have known him for more than 20 years will confirm this. They and their wives have equally been by his side, particularly during this last difficult year and we thank them for their support, and love. We also thank all of our many friends and family – Paul and Margy, Jan and Dave, John and Les, Kim and Yvette and Pauls brother Peter and parents Jean and Chris who have been there by our side throughout. Mark has also been an invaluable support to both Amy Alan and Lynn.
What else to say about Andrew? An eclectic taste in music; Michael Jackson, blues, Drum and Base, Prodigy etc. Xbox played into the night with friends online. He loved debates; well informed so always won. American road trips. Loved cats. Scuba diving. Often said ‘pull my finger’... Always won at thumb wars. Took pictures of us asleep on the sofa, dobbing us in to Amy and Mark when we were babysitting.
He loved cars and followed the Grand Prix, attending the British Grand Prix several times. The first memorable time he camped in a one man tent for 4 days and had to ring the AA to rescue him as he had played the radio all night and exhausted the battery, he was the only one left in the field…
He loved food and drink and his taste was varied; when he was ill he requested calamari as a takeaway – and do you know he got it. He was a connoisseur of single malt whisky since his trips to the farm in Scotland with Paul and friends. He was full of surprises – he grew chillis at home very successfully- not sure what he did with them all! He brewed his own beer, wine and cider and wrote poems and anecdotes to entertain all.
Most of all he loved his nephew and godchildren. He had a special affinity to his God daughter Annabelle and her sisters Eleanor and Elsie who you will hear more about later. A quiet, unassuming man, children would gravitate to him; somehow he had a natural connection with them. Even on the darkest days of his illness his mood and demeanour lifted when they came to see him.
His humour continued despite his illness, nick naming his tumour ‘the evil twin’. He never complained and considered everyone’s feelings. He wanted to know what caused the tumour so he could let others know and warn them. He was polite to all who cared for him, he made them laugh and smile – and soon became the nurse’s favourite and made a friend of his special carer April.
Gramps recently described him as ‘a fine young man‘, and others - a gentle giant. He has left a lasting legacy of memories, words and pictures that will always remain with us and all who knew him
To us he was our son and brother, easy to love, and he always made us very proud. Our Boy - a wonderful human being xxxx