On March 14th, 1986 a Son, Friend and Mentor was born by the name of Andy Opsitos (known as Shades to his friends).  In the summer of 2012 Andys life came to an unexpected end, he was only 26.  Due to financial hardships and the untimely passing, friends and family pitched in to try to relieve the cost of funeral expenses but as we all know, sometimes expenses add up higher than expected.  Because of lack of funding, funeral costs have been hard to manage for his mother and because of this, it has delayed Andy having a headstone.  It has been 4 years and all though flowers and items of respect are nice and appreciated and continue to pour in, a headstone is much better at weathering the elements and time and is the perfect final piece to memorialize the life of an outstanding human being.

I have personally arranged for a headstone for Andy thanks to my healthy network of connections at an affordable cost.  The Headstone will cost $2,200 and that is for the Headstone itself, placement, engraving and even a picture of Andys face!

Now you're probably wondering, "then why is the goal $5,000"?

Andy had his viewing at Savolskis funeral home in Munhall.  They have been of service to the community for decades helping generations of familys during such a tough time.  They have always been helpful, kind, courteous and respectful.  Because of the financial hardship explained earlier, there is still a balance of $2,289.  The saying is, "it takes a village to raise a child" so in the same vein, it should take a village to bury one.  By finalizing this debt with the funeral home we can give his mother financial relief, the funeral home will appreciate our gesture and surely remember it in future times of distress and Andys spirit can live on without lingering responsibilites.

And finally, GOFUNDME takes a small percentage as a transactional fee for every donation.  After doing the math on $5,000 that would be $250.00 that goes to GO FUND ME.

That brings our total to $4,739.  The remaining $200 will either go towards the Headstone manufacturer as a tip of gratitude for their gracious discounted price or to the cemetary for upkeep costs of Andys grave site.

There is a Facebook group called "Headstone fund for Andy Shades Opsitos".  In there I will be posting where we are at with our goals, when we hit our goal and also receipts of everything so you can be assured your money went to finalizing this campaign properly.  In that group, there will also be a picture you can use to replace your profile picture with to help build more awareness for this cause.

$5,000 is a lot of money but it's a little bit of money when we are talking about all the lives Andy has impacted during his short stay on earth.  $5,000 is 50 people donating $100 or 100 people donating $50.  I am setting a goal to have this limit met in 3 weeks MAXIMUM with a setting day for the Headstone between May 27th and June 4th.  This gives people from out of town and people with obligations time to make arrangements to be on site the day of the reveal and also gives the headstone company adequate time to meet the deadline.  The exact date will be announced once the goal is met.  April 20th is the absolute last day in order to make this eventful and special for all his friends and family and donators.

I understand life can be hard and money can be short but giving is the ultimate payment to the universe and from experience the universe always rewards you for your sacrifice.  With that being said, don't feel like any amount is not enough.  Wether its $10, $40, $100, $500 any amount will bring us closer to closure for Andy Shades Opsitos.  Help us, help him, rest in peace.

Thank You
GOFUNDME Account Manager,
Mike Hitt.
You can reach me on my Facebook or email at [email redacted]