Andrew was passionate about a handful of things: his family, his friends, cars, his pets, and very random data and facts; but somewhere near the top of that list was being a Buckeye. Andrew and I met at Ohio State while getting our MBAs at The Fisher School of Business. We happened to have one class together before he graduated. The class was horrible and neither of us should have even been in it (something to do with coding applications for Excel that I never understood); but Andrew did the final presentation for his team and I laughed the entire time. I guess that was all it took. And a new chapter began.

13 years later, a different chapter began when Andrew was diagnosed with stage 4 metastatic melanoma that had spread to his brain. And we were back to our alma mater to begin the biggest battle with cancer I have ever known at The James Cancer Hospital and Solove Research Institute at Ohio State. While we practically lived at the hospital for 3 brain surgeries, whole brain radiation, 5 rounds of targeted radiation, immunotherapy, chemotherapy, and various other complications that led to different surgeries, we were always very happy to get a room that had a view of the stadium. In the earlier days of the battle, Andrew and I went straight to a football game after discharge from the hospital, against my better judgment, but I knew how important it was to him. That was a repeating theme for two seasons. And that next game is what he always looked forward to, to keep going and to keep fighting.

November of 2025, and the big game against the team up north has arrived. Andrew now knew his battle was over, but it was just beginning that day for his team. So many people asked me if he watched the game. I think a part of him did. I held his hand for kickoff and told him it was on, but he was sleeping, and in that moment he wasn't in pain. Then Michigan scored a field goal followed quickly by an interception. I looked at Andrew and said, "I'm really glad you didn't have to see that." And then I told him that I thought the Buckeyes would win this one for him. They did. And he passed the next day.

In the last months, I thought long and hard about how to honor Andrew. He was way more than a Buckeye, of course. He was a dad, a husband, a son, a brother, and a dear friend to many people. So I worked with Ohio State and decided to dedicate and plant a Buckeye Tree on campus in honor of his very unique and dedicated spirit. This will be a place for family and friends to go visit when going to a game or even maybe attending Ohio State in years to come. And if you're lucky, you can grab a Buckeye to take home. But most importantly, it will be a place to stop and reflect on Andrew and feel all those unique memories and moments that you could only have with a person like Andrew.

This GoFundMe is to support that cause and to honor his spirit should you want to participate, or have a long-lasting way to honor Andrew. The tree will be planted regardless of contributions here, but I wanted to give his loved ones a way to be a part of it if that brings some peace or closure. This was a hard-fought battle, and I am hoping together we can make something meaningful out of it.