Andrew C. Youssef

Andrew C. Youssef, the son of Art and Carolyn Youssef, passed away peacefully on November 30, 2013 at the age of 38. He was born on June 30, 1975 in Scarborough, Ontario, Canada and has been a Los Angeles Resident for over 33 years. He is survived by his Mother and Father, Brother Patrick, Sister-in-law Shanon, nephews Tyler and Kyle and niece Melody. Andrew is nephew to Farouk Youssef, Fouad Youssef and Fayek Youssef. He graduated with a Doctor of Pharmacy Degree from University of the Pacific in 1999. By day, he was a clinical pharmacist at Long Beach Memorial Hospital. After work, though, you were likely to find him attending concerts in and around the greater Southern California area. Andrew was the editor of his music blog Amateur Chemist [ www.amateurchemist.blogspot.com ] where he reviewed and photographed hundreds of shows a year. He was also a contributor to OC Weekly, LA Weekly, Stereogum and Pure Volume. He was initially reluctant to share details of his fight with cancer, but that would change. On February 28th, 2013 he leveraged his writing talents to document his battle in OC Weekly in a nationally syndicated weekly column titled "Last Shot: A Concert Photographer's Battle with Cancer" [ http://blogs.ocweekly.com/heardmentality/last_shot/ ]. It was here where he courageously shared the intimate details of his fight with the deadly disease and how he refused to let it control him. In September, Andrew found out his condition was terminal and he would be put into hospice care. He continued to fight, attend concerts and shoot shows. As a testament to his resolve, he photographed one of his favorite bands at Staples Center in the photo pit a mere 3 weeks prior to his passing. His legacy will continue on as part of a Photojournalist Fellowship Program with his namesake sponsored by OC Weekly and Live Nation. "Music gives a soul to the universe, wings to the mind, flight to the imagination and life to everything." - Plato Visitation will be held on Sunday, December 8th, 2013 from 10 am to 2 pm at Forest Lawn Mortuary - Cypress. Funeral service is on Monday, December 9th, 2013 at 2 pm at Forest Lawn Mortuary - Cypress.