In Memoriam

At age 70, Andy died suddenly from overwhelming cancer. Born to John Abercrombie and Mary Harmar Fust, he grew up in Erie, Pennsylvania. Classical music, great literature, a love for the English language, passion for the beauty and wonder of nature, a keen interest in people, and an uncontainable sense of humor all worked toward a rich and layered life. From age 15-18 he attended and graduated from South Kent School in rural Connecticut, an experience that gave him long-term mental grist and lifelong friendships. In 1971 he met and married Patricia Susan Niccum while both were students at The University of Denver. Unable to apply himself to college at that time, they moved back to Erie where he took on a series of hard physical jobs--farm worker, ranch-hand, shakeout laborer in a brass foundry, maintenance crewman for the Great Lakes ore-carrier ships. He valued all of these experiences throughout his life both for the challenges they presented and the variety of people he worked alongside. Moving to Loveland in 1976, he joined a small home-construction crew for 10 years. Andy embodied a lifelong love for both the life of the mind and for hard physical labor. He read and wrote extensively, wrestling with the deep questions of life. In his mid-30's he decided to give college another try. This time, while overcoming many challenges, he thrived, earning his BA and MA in English Literature from Colorado State University. He pushed on to receive his PhD from The University of Denver in 1999. Andy taught composition and English literature for 15 years at a number of area schools--CSU, DU, UNC, Arapahoe Community College, Colorado Christian and also for home-schooled high-schoolers. He had a true gift for teaching and some lives blossomed by his unusual methods...he believed passionately that everyone had something uniquely their own worth saying and that all could grow in their ability to express themselves through writing. Twin sons, Owen and Benjamin, born in 1989 became huge focuses for his life. He took untold delight in them and was determined to be an involved, supportive, and appreciative father. Andy returned to physical labor in his later years, working as a handyman and stone mason. His free-standing walls and curving (never straight) paths grace a number of local gardens and yards. Andy suffered greatly, quietly over many years with physical and mental torment for which medical science had no definitive answers. In his final month of life, he came to see that nothing of this world had met the deep needs of his heart. He began to understand that only the love of God the Father, salvation by Christ Jesus, new life by the work of the Holy Spirit could release him from the emotional wounds and bondage that burdened him throughout his life. He died in beauty and great peace at home, surrounded by the love of God, of family and friends. His parents and older brother John preceded him in death. He is survived and will be carried onward in the grateful hearts of his wife and sons, his brother Tom and sister Mary and her husband Chuck Dundon, and by a wide network of family and friends. A good friend has initiated a fundraiser to place a memorial bench & tree in Loveland...if interested, please email [email protected].