Andrew Havas

Andrew Havas of Boulder, CO, died peacefully January 23, 2019. He was 79 years old. Andrew was born in Budapest, Hungary to Klara and Gabor Havas. When he was very young, Andrew and his family endured World War 2. His father was conscripted into a Nazi labor camp and then incarcerated in a concentration camp at Mauthausen just before its liberation by Allied troops. His mother hid with friends and was forced to entrust Andrew with strangers when he was 5 years old until the end of the war.

At age 16, Andrew joined the Hungarian uprising against communist rule, and fled the country in November of 1956. He was resettled in a refugee camp, from which he escaped to London, England. From there he made contact with his family and was reunited with them when he was 18 years old.

Andrew and his family immigrated to America passing through Ellis Island, and settled down in Teaneck, NJ. Andrew received a bachelor’s degree in Physics from Hunter College of City University of New York. He met his first wife, Sharon, and left New York to begin a master’s degree program in philosophy at UC Santa Barbara in California. After the birth of his first son, he moved to Boulder, CO, to attend a graduate program in philosophy at CU-Boulder.

Andrew founded an art studio in Niwot, CO, from which he made sculpture and paintings to be sold at art fairs throughout the region. After the birth of his second son, he began organizing art shows, and operating seasonal and year-round art and crafts shops on Boulder’s Pearl Street Mall and Longmont’s Twin Peaks Mall. Later, he began operating a real estate investment and property management company.

Andrew met the love of his life, Deborah, after the 1981 Bolder Boulder. They were married in their backyard in Boulder on June 25, 1983, which they faithfully celebrated each year with a Flagstaff picnic. Over their 37+ years together they enjoyed many traveling & sailing adventures around the world. When he was diagnosed with kidney failure in 2006, Andrew received a kidney transplant - Deborah was the donor.

Throughout his life, Andrew found joy in sailing, playing soccer, tennis, and ping pong, and he formed many friendships through those activities. He loved music, and frequently attended concerts by the Takács Quartet with whom he and Deborah formed long-lasting friendships. Above all, Andrew was an avid reader.

He is survived by his wife Deborah, sons David (Hayley, daughter Johanna) and Alex, his sister Zsuzsa, nieces Alexandra (Jason, son Everett) and Erica (Tom, daughter Samantha and son Jacob).

A memorial service will be held on June 2, 2019, from 11-12 at Crist Mortuary in Boulder, CO, followed by a reception with light fare. In lieu of flowers, please visit the memorial bench to be erected at the BCPOS Walden Ponds Wildlife Habitat in Andrew’s memory as you are able.