Support for DeAndre Griffis, my brother

Disclaimer: this is going to be all over the place. I’m grieving so bare with me.

Hello, I’m DeJanae Griffis, and I am raising funds to properly honor the life of my little brother. DeAndre Griffis, known lovingly as “Andre” or “Dre” was in a car accident on Monday, February 19, 2024. According to the reports, Andre’s injuries were “catastrophic” and my brother was pronounced dead on the scene. Andre’s death has left his family with many unanswered questions and unexpected expenses. We plan to use any funds raised to respect Andre’s wishes for cremation and funeral service, pay any outstanding debts, and continue financially supporting our mother who is disabled (and Andre’s favorite person)

As many people know, Andre was always the “life of the party.” He cared for people deeply and sincerely. He made friends everywhere, his friends became his family, and he loved his family fiercely. Andre grew up loving sports, especially basketball. He shared his special interests with his family, dragging us to his games and always trying to teach me what a “triple double” is (I still don’t get it, sorry bro ) As he matured, he fell in love with music production, cooking, fashion, traveling and so much more. Andre wanted to experience anything and everything. He lived his life being unapologetically himself. As he would say, he was “here for a good time, not a long time.”

In the wake of his passing, our mother and I are left to figure out how to go on without Andre. Of our mom’s four children, Andre and I were the surviving two. This loss will be the third time our mother will mourn her child. My brother and I were raised primarily by our mother (who Andre called “Mamba”) and her chosen families. Our mother, who called Andre “Sonny” or “sonny boy”, became permanently disabled in 2020 following two strokes. While I took on the responsibility of primary caregiver, my brother helped financially. Andre did his best to make sure our mother was being taken care of, even when he couldn’t be physically present. Andre and I kept in touch about our mother’s health and general condition. Though Andre and I didn’t always agree on everything, it was always love between us in the end. We knew we could fight and still end any conversation with a joke and a laugh. He was just such a good, kind soul, I could never stay upset with him.

In the days since my brother’s death, his legacy has been misrepresented and I am making this fundraiser to address that. He was so much more than a “community member of Navarre FL” as other outlets are reporting. He had an entire life filled with love, family and friends, achievements etc before he ever got to Florida. I do not wish to muddy my brother’s death by fighting with anyone. However, I will not tolerate anyone disrespecting my brother’s legacy, or disrespecting our mother during our shared grief. Thank you in advance.