Remembering Andy
Memorial placed in school courtyard
By SCOTT POWELL Ledger Staff Writer spowell@gaffneyledger.com

Ledger photo / SCOTT POWELL Ewing Middle School student Tiffany Riddle wipes away a tear Tuesday while looking at a marker for seventh grader Andy Lowery, who was remembered at a memorial service in the school courtyard.

Ewing Middle School students and teachers struggled to hold back the tears Tuesday afternoon while remembering 13-year-old Andy Lowery.

Andy, a seventh-grader, was trick-or-treating with friends a few blocks from his home on Halloween at 8:40 p.m. when he collapsed in a driveway and became unresponsive. Autopsy and toxicology reports indicate Andy had a pre-existing heart condition that caused his death.

Ewing Middle School chose to remember Andy's life with a memorial service Tuesday afternoon.

Andy's big heart and warm smile is what his classmates and teachers will always remember.

"Andy was my best friend," Ewing Middle student Josh White said. "He was a hard worker and a good student."

Ewing Middle Discovery Science and math teacher Lucenda Joyce remembered Andy as a kind young man who loved to learn and help others. He brightened the days of students and teachers with his constant smile and laughter.

"Andy was a good person. He was well-loved and wanted to be a part of people's lives. He was very polite and respectful, and definitely left an impression on me that I will never forget," Joyce said.

"I think the message we can learn from Andy is we need to care about our lives and other people."

Lowery suffered from Arrhythmogenic Right Ventricular Dysplasia, a heart disease that can go undetected unless a person has an electrocardiogram. It is estimated ARVD occurs in 1 out of 5,000 persons, mostly in young men.

Ewing Middle has placed a marker and planted flowers in the courtyard in Andy's honor.

"We wanted to add some color to our courtyard in memory of Andy because of the way he brightened up our lives," Ewing Middle Principal Dr. Denise Wooten said. "We planted pansies to add color to our winter days. We planted lilies which will bloom in the spring to add color at that time of year."

In addition to the new flowers, Ewing Middle raised more than $600 to send to Gilmore Mortuary to help pay for Andy's funeral expenses.

"Last week, we met with our advisory groups and I asked everyone at Ewing Middle to write down one 'Andy-inspired' goal that they could realistically reach by the end of the semester," Wooten said. "If everyone tackles one 'Andyinspired' goal, we will know in our hearts that his life amounted to something extraordinary because each student will be better, Ewing Middle School will be better and the world will be better because of the positive difference Andy made in each of us."