Andrew Spencer, 17, was the type of person who brought happiness to all who knew him or crossed his path. He was gentle and treated all people he met with a special respect and unconditional love. He had that glimmer in his eye that said “I’m excited about life.” He was the all-American kid.

Baseball was always magical for Andrew, and he was a natural. In fall 2004, he was looking forward to his senior year of high school as a left-handed pitcher. Andrew also loved video production class. He loved it so much that his school schedule consisted of three video production classes and baseball, along with civics and English. After his death, his baseball jersey number, 50, was retired in a special ceremony.

Andrew was also an adventurer and was riding his friend’s dirt bike after school on October 4, 2004. “As a mom, I told him ‘please don’t ride that bike’ and he said he would be all right,” remembered Lynne Spencer Kempf. “I then asked him ‘what if you are not’ and he replied, ‘mom, I will always be all right.’ That afternoon the dirt bike won. Andrew was killed almost instantly. I knew about organ donation, but since Andrew wasn’t on life support, he wasn’t able to donate organs. But he was able to become a tissue donor.

“Most of us never talk to our kids about dying and whether they want to donate their organs. I made this decision for him. I know that Andrew would want to help someone, as I would appreciate it if someone helped my family.”

Lynne stated that “Donate Life and One Legacy have been wonderful to us. We have decorated the Rose Parade float, placed a rose in Andrew’s honor each year on the float and participated in the Donate Life Run Walk at Cal State Fullerton. The support we have felt through these organizations has helped us cope with this awful tragedy. Andrew was an inspiration, and his legacy has been secured with the way he lived his life and with the lives he has helped.”