Andrew Charles MacPherson

The family home on Goward was a cornerstone in Andy’s life. The house was often bustling with friends and family and animals in the yard. Many of life’s milestones were marked by parties and gatherings, with New Year’s Eve being one of the great traditions. Andy attended the local school and played many community sports, but soccer was always his favorite. Andy’s passion for the outdoors was fostered early in life with countless family camping trips and time outdoors, canoeing, fishing, kayaking, and hiking. The infamous night walks were one of his earliest adventures and grew his love of exploration….

Andy’s skill for guiding showed up early on in his life. At the age of 7 he wandered off on a BC Ferry and was found entertaining passengers with one of his ‘long talks’ about wolves. Guiding has taken him from boating to see bears on the West Coast, to stocking muskox in the Thelon, Northwest Territories. From paddling with manatees and looking for Jaguars in Belize, to dancing with caribou, howling with the wolves, corralling belugas for research, and walking with polar bears on the Hudson Bay. From expeditions to see narwhals and watch mother polar bears and their cubs emerge from their dens in the far north, to photo-ops with penguins and swimming in the Antarctic. Recently he has once again been working back on the West Coast this time focussing on grey whales and coastal wolves. Andy’s guiding style was notable for his abilities to answer any question with the utmost patience and spotting wildlife long before discernible on the horizon. And he was always teaching.

Andy was a natural wanderer and never stayed in one place too long. His family and his friends, many of whom he has known since Elementary school, kept him happily tied to Victoria. Andy loved them deeply and above all else he valued his time with them. He enjoyed Sunday family dinners, quiet visits, bigger gatherings, poker nights, crib games at the pub, helping others out around their homes and so much more. But he was never in Victoria long enough for us before he was off again. Andy had another home in Ucluelet where he spent his downtime with walks on the beach, hikes, surfing or puttering away on his many projects. And, he was never there long either because the next adventure was calling – exploring the wild West Coast with his Dad or friends. Sometimes he was off traveling the world – Africa, New Zealand, India, South America to name a few places.

While Andy loved wildlife and the great outdoors, it was his ability to connect with people that made him even more special. We tried to capture this in our words but anything we came up with paled in comparison to the pictures created by the memories that people have shared on a Facebook page created to celebrate Andy. If you haven’t already discovered this amazing tribute, please join the page at https://www.facebook.com/groups/1242488309578551 We encourage you to share some of your memories and photos of Andy or just read about his unique and amazing life.

Andy’s passing leaves a big hole in the lives of many people. He is survived by his love Jody, his parents Sherron and Al, his sister Dawn and brother-in-law Wade, his niece Sarah and his nephew Stefan, as well as many aunts, uncles and cousins, many life-long friends, new friends and colleagues, too many to name or count. He will be so greatly missed.

Andy lived an extra ordinary life. He was lucky in so many ways, including cards . . . ‘Hey Grommet, it’s your turn.’

In lieu of flowers please consider a donation in Andy’s name to Rugged Coast Research Society or another charity/foundation of your choice that benefits wildlife and/or our environment. And the next time you are on a beach . . . please take a bag with you and honour him by picking up garbage as you wander.

We have just learned that Andy passed away suddenly and unexpectedly from an undiagnosed heart condition. Therefor, we would also like to direct people to the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada as a possible alternative for donations in Andy’s name. Thank you!

We are planning a couple of events to celebrate Andy’s life. A small funeral service, with a live feed, next week and a larger outdoor gathering when the weather is nicer this Spring. Due to COVID restrictions we will have very limited capacity at the service next week. There are so many important people in Andy’s life, it was very difficult to stay within the limits. If you did not receive an email directly and confirm your attendance with Dawn directly, please do not show up at the funeral home there will be no room for you. Instead, please see the information below for directions to link to the live feed. And, we hope that we will see all of you this Spring. Thank you for your understanding.

Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.firstmemorialsaanich.com for the MacPherson family and Jody.