Andrew W. Conrad

1941 - 2017

Andrew W. Conrad

Formerly of Johnson City - Andrew W. Conrad, age 75, passed away peacefully on August 28, 2017, after an 11-year battle with pancreatic cancer. He died as he had lived, serenely and surrounded by the love of good friends and family. He appropriately enjoyed ice-cream for his last supper, and he retained his sense of humor to the end, even - on his last morning - addressing his female nurse as "Fred" with a straight face (a longtime favorite joke of his)...

Andrew was born on December 23rd 1941 in Johnson City, NY to George Emery Conrad and Cora Belle Barnes. He is survived by his sister Elizabeth (Raymond) Prebish and brothers Roger (Ethel) and George Conrad; his ex-wife Mary Ann Blaskowsky Conrad; his children Heather Conrad and Emery Conrad; his grandchildren Hannah Bradley, Alexander Conrad, and Milosh Conrad; his nieces and nephews Pamela (Dave) Gould, Kate (Pat) Wolfe, Marcie (Jeremy) Tennant, Brock Conrad, and Brandee Conrad; and countless other family including many "chosen" family members who saw him as brother, father, grandfather, and mentor.

Andrew spent his life as a teacher and a student. He earned multiple degrees from Barrington College, Princeton Seminary, and Princeton University, culminating in a PhD in Linguistics. He spent the majority of his career at Mercer County Community College - as a professor of English, then Dean of Liberal Arts, and then once more a professor of English - where he touched the lives of thousands of young people and fellow educators.

In his career as in his life, Andrew's legacy is one of warmth, wisdom, kindness, and love. He earned the love and admiration of everyone who knew him, and the devotion of a community committed to supporting him, by giving freely and generously of his time, money, energy, insight, and support to those around him.

In recent years, Andrew became an active and much-beloved member of the community at the Unitarian Universalist Church at Washington Crossing. He brought his characteristically calm and quippy presence to each of the committees and groups he joined and became an integral part of the family there. The love and support he found is in clear proportion to the love and support he gave, and the chosen family of this community was a profound source of strength and joy for him during his final illness.

A memorial service will be held on Saturday December 16th, 2017 at 2:30pm at the Unitarian Universalist Church at Washington Crossing, at 268 Washington Crossing-Pennington Road, Titusville NJ. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in his name to the Dr. John P. Hoffman fund at the Fox Chase Cancer Center in Philadelphia, PA (information available at www.foxchase.org/donate/hoffmanfund).