Strike Out Brain Cancer Fundraiser Honors Andrew Reed ’97
By Mónica Hernández Williams
A love of life. T-Mobile Park was a special place for Andrew Reed ’97, who loved to cheer on the Mariners with his family, including his son Julian.
When Andrew Reed ’97 passed away of glioblastoma, an aggressive brain cancer, in 2024, the Whitman College community lost a generous and fun spirit, known for his love of life. Now, family, friends and fellow Whitties are coming together to fund hope for others facing a similar diagnosis.
Andrew had a contagious energy about him, says his wife Amy Reed ’00. He came to Whitman from San Diego, California, to study History. He quickly made friends on campus, joining the Tau Kappa Epsilon fraternity and sitting courtside while cheering on his best friends during every Blues men’s basketball game. Their friend group remained close after graduation, regularly getting together in support of each other.
Andrew valued community and was always thinking of creative ways to give back. He purchased several properties to rent out to students and spent his career co-owning a favorite Whittie hangout: the Green Lantern Tavern. It was there that he met his future wife, Amy.
“I worked there my senior year. Obviously, we had a lot in common given our Whitman connection,” she says. “Andrew just had this zest for life!”
As their bond blossomed, they married and made Walla Walla their home, raising their three children in the valley.
Turning Heartbreak Into Healing
A life of love. Amy Reed ’00 and Andrew Reed ’97 with their three children—Finley, Basil and Julian—in 2023.
Everything changed when Andrew was diagnosed with glioblastoma in 2023. Eight months after being diagnosed, Andrew passed away in January 2024.
He was an avid baseball fan who loved the Mariners, spending plenty of family time at the ballpark. So Amy decided to reach out to the team to ask if they could honor him. An immediate yes led to an annual fundraiser for brain cancer research, now in its second year.
“We wanted a way to do something meaningful and recognize the devastation that a glioblastoma diagnosis causes and honor all the lives that have been lost and those who are still battling,” says Amy.
Baseball held so many core memories for the Reeds, so it was an especially meaningful way to memorialize him when friends and family gathered for the first fundraiser in 2024.
“There was a little bit of a thrill, a little magic in the air,” says Amy. “Andrew would have loved it. It was a sea of people he adored who had taken care of our family during this hard, hard time. We all felt his presence. It was such a beautiful moment.”
Help Strike Out Brain Cancer
The Reed family hopes the now-annual fundraiser will continue to raise awareness and support for cancer research.
“There’s still so much to be done to help find a cure,” Amy says. “We are all victims in this, and it feels hopeful to put money towards something that can spare people the loss and devastation that we’ve experienced.”
This year, she set a fundraising goal of $10,000. To reach it, the Mariners are offering special admission tickets for their home game on Saturday, July 19—a date the Reeds will never forget.
“They offered three days for us to choose from. Coincidentally, July 19 would have been Andrew’s 50th birthday,” she says, adding that it falls just three days after Glioblastoma Awareness Day.
Ten dollars from each ticket will be donated to Fred Hutch. Additional donations can be made online. By supporting the fundraiser, fans will get a Mariners-themed Strike Out Brain Cancer T-shirt to wear as they cheer on the Mariners together.
“I will forever sing their praises,” says Amy. “Of all the things that we've done—a celebration of life and other kinds of memorials—this one has felt the most important to us. It provides us with a special kind of joy.”