Tuesday, July 24, 2012

Sharing Memories

One of the sweet spots in this sad time has been listening to others share their memories of Andre.  Some people knew him through his profession of computers, other through a shared passion for cars, some as a stroke and turn judge at swim meets, and others as the co-creator of whimsical birthday cakes for his children.  My daughter remembers the "tickle monster" who used to pick her up and whirl her around as a little girl.

Val is collecting stories and pictures for the children to have as they grow up.  She may also use some at the memorial service on Friday.  If you have a story or a picture to share, please contact us at hedrick4419@gmail.com and we'll pass it on to Val.  Or feel free to post a comment here.

One of Andre's friends from the Rennlist (Porsche) 928 forum posted this picture of Andre at a "Sharks in the Park" event.



Here's one at a Clayton Fourth of July parade, where
 he would dress up and be silly with the kids.

  

We'd love to hear and see your memories!

Thanks,

Gina Cattalini

19 comments:

  1. I'm so sorry for your loss.

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  2. This man showed what an engineer can be. Astute and sophisticated both as to technology and as to people. Every personal computer user on the Planet should be glad he lived when he lived and as he lived. I am sure he will be greatly missed, even by folks like me who only learned of his contributions after he passed.

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  3. I am sorry for your loss. My deepest sympathy and my condolences.

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  4. I didnt really know the engineer side of Andre... i met him while we were at the Citadel together and in the summer of 1986 we both were lifeguards at the Isle of Palms near Charleston SC. I'll never forget seeing Andre pull a "near dead" 5 year old from the surf that he bumped into taking the rescue board out to go surfing lol. He saved that kids life, he handed the kid to me cause he was still tethered to this huge 14' board, but Andre saved that kid, no doubt. We pulled some peeps off a sailboat that collided with a pier one rough ripping day, we made the news for that one... Andre was fearless at doing his job, which at that time was saving lives. I remember seeing him dive from that pier into that surf, like into the mix of it. It sounds like he maintained that approach throughout his professional career. I was a class or two ahead of Andre at the Citadel and went into the Army and sort of lost touch, for 20+ years. He contacted me somewhat out of the blue a couple of months ago and we had chatted and done a little catching up. One of us sought the other out and i got to meet Valerie and see glimpses of the kids. i was glad to talk to him again. I wish that he were still here, as i'm sure ya'll do as well. I wish alot of things actually...

    Sail on Andre... Prayers for strength and peace to you and your family Valerie.

    Russ

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  5. I am so sorry. I did not know Andre well- only corresponded a few times with him- but as we all knew him as a man of integrity this touches all of us.

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  6. I'm so very sorry.
    I wish the strength to deal with this for his lovely family!

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  7. I'm very sad to hear about this and I'm so sorry for your loss.
    I hope that Andre found the better part for himself.

    My deepest condolences

    Markus

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  8. Seems to be a nice man.
    Sad.
    Rest in peace.

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  9. As a father and as one of the many in the Linux world who benefitted from Andre's work, my deepest condolences and may God be your peace during this difficult time.

    WS

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    Replies
    1. Well said..... This breaks my heart to lose such a brilliant mind. I just now learned of his contributions to the GNU/Linux movement and his very positive butterfly effect he left on humanity.

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  10. I didn't know him personally, but I used the technique he implemented into GNU/Linux. I hope his family takes pride and comfort in the thought, that the whole community of GNU/Linux Users will miss him and his effort for freedom too.
    Please share if there is something to help his family and kids.
    From Germany, my deepest condolences

    Johannes

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  11. Sorry to read about this.
    His code will forever power devices.

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  12. He patiently reviewed & merged my first (beginner) commits into the Linux kernel in 2000, which lead me to everything I'm doing nowadays...

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  13. May soul rest in peace.. i m very sad to read this post... i will surely ask for certain help from a friend of mine.. and will contact you...

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