An Ohio University student died Saturday in his hometown of Saint Marys after a long battle with cancer.
Andrew K. Howick, 21, a junior sports management major, died at 11:50 a.m. Saturday at Joint Township District Memorial Hospital in Saint Marys. Andrew was diagnosed with Hodgkin's Lymphoma in March 2003 and suffered a relapse last April.
At OU, Andrew was an active member of the Lambda Chi Alpha fraternity and served as president until his illness returned and forced him to step down at the end of Winter Quarter last year.
Lambda Chi Alpha President Brian Axe, Andrew's high school friend and former roommate, was in Saint Marys this weekend visiting him and returned to the hospital a final time only minutes after his death.
Speaking of him later, Axe said, He was just an amazing person. There wasn't a person he ever came across who didn't feel a connection to him. He was a friend to everybody he knew.
Andrew's mother, Karen Howick, described him as a conscientious student and a dedicated friend.
I found (Andrew) to be fairly serious-minded; he felt committed about certain things and didn't waver
Mrs. Howick said. He was a very gentle young man and his friends were extremely important to him.
Patrick Howick, Andrew's father, said simply, Anybody that ever met him loved him.
A true passion of Andrew's was sports, Mrs. Howick said. Even as a little boy he'd sit and read packs of baseball cards rather than pick up a book.
An avid Ohio State University and Bengals fan, Andrew played intramural golf at OU his freshman year after four years on the Saint Marys Memorial High School golf team. He continued to play with friends at a local Saint Marys golf course when he returned home, even while ill. Howick hoped to obtain a master's degree in sports management at OU.
He was a young man with an awful lot of potential Mrs. Howick said.
After Andrew's diagnosis in March 2003, he endured chemotherapy and returned to OU for Fall and Winter Quarters of 2003-2004. More than 80 percent of lymphoma patients can be cured, according to http://www.lymphoma.org, but Andrew experienced a relapse last April.
At the Cleveland Clinic, Andrew underwent two back-to-back stem cell transplants, according to Mrs. Howick.
We were amazed over the last couple of years
the amount of kids who came up from Athens
specifically to see him even in Cleveland last summer
Mrs. Howick said.
The chemotherapy treatments Andrew received were not able to keep up with the growth of his cancer, and his condition declined since November.
Andrew was always hopeful to return to OU and continue his studies, Mrs. Howick said.
He was hoping he'd be back in class in January
she said. (OU's campus) became a real focal point in his life and hope
and he kept it in mind through his treatments.
Andrew's funeral will be 1:30 p.m. Wednesday at the Miller Funeral Home, 1605 Celina Road, Saint Marys, Ohio. Calling hours are 2 p.m. to 7 p.m. at the funeral home, where donations will be accepted for the Saint Marys
Community Foundation.
Dean of Students Terry Hogan said there were no plans for an OU memorial service yet, but the university would work with the family to arrange one if they wish.
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