Andrew Placid Charles Hospedales

Andrew Hospedales was born and raised in Rancho Quemado, Johnson Trace, Erin Road, Trinidad, West Indies on September 30, 1934. He was the firstborn son of Joseph and Rebecca Hospedales weighing-in at 3 ½ lbs. He could barely cry, but his mother and grandmother nurtured him well and he survived. His mother passed away when he was twelve years old leaving him and his five siblings in the care of himself and his grandmother, Santana Padiez-Hospedales.

After completing his elementary education, Andrew attended Southern Academy in San Fernando, and Caribbean Union College (Caribbean University) Maracas Valley, Trinidad WI. In 1965, he traveled to the United States and registered in the New York School of Mechanical Dentistry. He practiced for some years and did an excellent job at the Concha Dental Laboratory in Queens, New York. The call to ministry was irresistible and it became obvious when Andrew left his dental tech position to register at Oakwood College (Oakwood University) as a theology major. He was like a father figure to all the students at Oakwood College and everyone respected and loved him dearly. His closest friend Philip was very tall and Andrew was very short so they were given a nickname for it. They rallied together, studied together and they graduated together.

Andrew loved people. Early in life he showed caring and kindness to his siblings and to people in general. His father loved him dearly and often said of him, “this boy never broke a glass.” His siblings nickname him ‘Placid’ and his cricket and soccer friends nicknamed him ‘Priest.’ He loved his church and was always first to offer to serve in any capacity. He especially loved visitor’s day. One Sabbath a certain young lady and her sisters were invited to sing for Sabbath School. Andrew experienced love at first sight and he kept it to himself. He befriended the other sisters, but kept his distance from the one he was interested in. Whenever there was a wedding or any special occasion he made sure to offer to be her escort. After about a year or so, he asked his grandmother, “Mama, which of the girls in church do you think I should marry?” His grandma could not speak English, but she understood what he asked her, and he could not speak Spanish but he understood her answer. She said, “I want you to marry Tarsey daughter, the skinny one.” He said o’k mama, and he kept it to himself and said nothing to anyone. He said to his friend Mike, “That girl could eat my rice” and they both spoke in parable openly about who can eat rice and who cannot eat rice. That was between him and Michael. One Sabbath day he built up a little courage and he wrote on a piece of paper, “O Love that will not let me go” and slipped it into her bible. But he had the shock of his life, because she attacked him as a wild angry eagle. That caused him to keep his distance for a few months.

Andrew changed his strategy, he arranged with the sisters, Annie, Nita, Joyce, Joan and Linda, to do Bible studies in their neighborhood every Sunday afternoon. He would come to the house and everyone went together to give bible studies. Then suddenly Nita started teasing, “Joyce, that guy likes you a lot. Do you see how he is watching you, and when he brings Brazilian nuts and grapefruits he gives the biggest and the best to you?” ”Oh no, hahaha, he will not touch my garment.” Suddenly the Holy Spirit started working on his behalf. Joyce started noticing that there was something different about him in comparison to others at church and in the community. He was young yet everyone respected him and trusted him. He was very protective about his three sisters and his two brothers and was close friends with his grandparents.

Like Gideon, Joyce started asking the Lord to give her a sign. She told no one what the sign was; it was between her and God. She asked the Lord that if he was the one, when next he comes to the house that he would talk about continuing his education and possibly going to college. That Thursday afternoon Andrew came to the house all fired-up and for about one hour and a half he talked about attending CUC. His conversation was only about continuing his education and he had registration and application forms because he was planning to go to CUC. He even turned to Joyce and said to her, let’s go to CUC you will like it there. When he left, Joyce said to Nita, “Why did you tell him to talk about education?” She said, “What do you mean? I did not see Andrew to tell him anything. And what are you talking about anyway?” Then maybe it was Ann who told him. Ann said, “What? Oh no; I heard him say that Pastor Manoram came to his house and encouraged him to go to CUC.” It was from that point, conversations between Joyce and Andrew became more interesting, serious and meaningful. They became best of friends. They never went on a date; they maintained a respectful relationship and October 29, 1961 they were married at the pastor’s house in San Fernando, Trinidad. Pastor Manoram was instrumental in finding Joyce a job at the conference office while Andrew was a student at CUC.

After two years they were blessed with baby Ray, and after another two years came baby Russell. Andrew loved his boys and often had heart-to-heart talks with them. He carried Ray with him to Alabama and they registered to attend Oakwood College together. Whenever he was greeted with “how are you” his answer was always the same, “I am struggling” therefore the Corona members appropriately nicknamed him “the Struggler.” Russell was married and gave him his first grandchild, Becky. Then Ray also got married and he also bore a baby girl, Samara. The girls were and the apple of his eyes. And he loved his extended grandchildren just the same. On Easter Sunday, his three year-old great niece Alana Jairam sang to him in the hospital and he really enjoyed it. It was a joy listening to him pray for each of his grandchildren one by one. His daughters-in-law were his treasures. Andrew was hired to work at the Northeastern Conference Community Center with Elder George Sampson. While attending to the physical needs of the community, he talked with people about the love of God and their soul salvation. He had conversation with a school teacher who played the piano and made the arrangements to begin a branch Sabbath School. The group grew rapidly and pretty soon we had the making of the Alpha SDA Company. The Hospedales’ were hired as a team to work with the Greater New York Conference of SDA. Over a period of 20 years, Pastor Hospedales served at the following churches:

Alpha SDA Company

Grand Concourse SDA Temple

Washington Heights Church (Pakistani Congregation)

Five Towns SDA Church

Huntington SDA Church

Living Waters SDA Church

Mamaroneck SDA Church

During his ministry, Pastor Hospedales’ was blessed with a wealth of miraculous experiences and lasting friendships that are unmatched by any other. Annual Evangelistic Crusades were always an important part of his agenda plus his regular pastoral visits and his warm and friendly personality; many precious souls were added to the church. In 2001 he suffered a stroke and could not speak for five hours. Three of the ladies from Mamaroneck SDA Church came and prayed for healing. They said, Lord, we are not going to leave here until you give our pastor his voice back. Five hours later pastor said, “I am hungry.” He enjoyed ministry and still found time to vacation with his family. That was the beginning of his bout with health challenges. In 2009 the Hospedales’ moved to Palm Bay Florida. He loved his church. He looked forward to being in church every Sabbath to enjoy the powerful preaching and singing of Pastor Phipps. He loved Pastor Campbell especially as he experienced his powerful prayer and his healing touch. He looked forward to getting his hair cut and getting groomed for church. Then a young couple brought their newborn so he could see the child, Abigail Evelyn Agard. He appreciated that very much. For his final moments, at the hospital he had the luxury of Pastor Phipps singing to him moments before breathing his final breath on Tuesday, April 2, 2013 at 11:25 pm.

He leaves to mourn his wife Joyce, sons Ray and Russell; granddaughters, Becky, Samara, Irne, Laura, and Anna; Great grandson Eliam; Brother Patrick; Sister Nita; Sisters-in-law Annie, Joan, Rita, Brenda, and Phyllis; Brothers-in-law Louis, Richard, Hollis, Jerry; and a host of nieces, nephews, and several cousins.

“O love that will not let me go, I rest my weary soul in Thee;

I give Thee back the life I owe, that in Thine ocean depths its flow

May richer, fuller be.”

Andrew Charles Hospedales (Placid - Priest - Struggler)