Lenard Andrus, known to friends as "Nardy" died earlier this month. He had been 540 days rehoused and was enrolled in school when he slipped and fell in a creek, according to friend Berkeley Law student Anthony Carrasco.
BERKELEY, Calif. - A formerly homeless man, who had gotten back on his feet, was attending school, and served as an inspirational and beloved figure in the UC Berkeley community, has died.
To his friends, 60-year-old Lenard Andrus was affectionately known as just "Nardy." And for the last 540 days of his life, he had managed to work hard to secure his status as a rehoused individual.
Earlier this month, his body was found in a creek in Berkeley, according to the Alameda County Coroner’s Bureau, which did not have a cause of death as of Tuesday.
Andrus’s close friend and Berkeley Law student Anthony Carrasco told KTVU that Nardy had been walking along the North Berkeley waterway and slipped and fell.
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KTVU wrote about Andrus in a story back in October, as part of a feature piece on Carrasco who had recently been nominated to receive a community award known as the "Chris Kindness Award" for the actions he took to help Nardy get off the streets.
The Berkeley Law student, once homeless himself, said that he couldn’t have predicted the events that brought Andrus into his life.
He first came upon the man when he found that he had taken shelter behind a vehicle in the carport of his student co-op complex.
"I went over to see how I could help," Carrasco recalled. It was the starting point of what would become "a very meaningful friendship."
Lenard Andrus (left) and Anthony Carrasco on Pier 9 in San Francisco in December 2022. (Anthony Carrasco)
As part of their relationship, Carrasco supported Nardy by providing resources to help him enroll in community college, apply for student aid, and even get him set up with the basics, like securing an ID and getting an email address.
With his help, Andrus got off the streets and became a full-time student as he began attending Berkeley City College while taking additional courses at Laney College in Oakland, according to Carrasco.
He said the last time he saw Nardy was last month when the two caught a movie, "Monty Python and the Holy Grail," at the New Parkway in Oakland.
Prior to that was last Halloween, when he and his friend got an opportunity to take a group of children trick-or-treating in Berkeley's Ashby District.
"That was very special for us both in different ways. For me, it was very special to help supervise some kids (who had been homeless most of their young lives) experience a ‘normal’ Halloween," Carrasco shared in an email correspondence. "For Nardy, it was surreal to be a Black adult guardian figure shepherding young Black children in a historically Black segment of Berkeley."
It was a moment that Nardy cherished as he told his friend that he didn’t think he’d ever have a chance to experience taking kids trick-or-treating.
"I am very grateful to have been there and helped some," Carrasco shared.
In addition to going to school and helping to volunteer, Nardy's personal life was also coming together. Carrasco explained that his friend had recently reconnected with his younger sister in Stockton.
A memorial service was planned for Wednesday. Carrasco said Nardy's 90-year-old mother had driven to California from Texas to be a part of the gathering.
Carrasco also shared that while his friendship with Nardy began as a bond of service with someone who needed a helping hand and had serendipitously walked into his life, he also benefited greatly as he considered Nardy an invaluable gift with his willingness to befriend him and his willingness to accept the help that he offered.
"He was one of my best friends. I know the Chris Kindness Award recognized me for showing Nardy kindness, but in reality he showed much more kindness to me," The law student shared with KTVU. "I may have worked hard to help him along his journey, but in reality he worked much harder to help me learn and grow as a person."
Andrus’s family has launched an effort to raise money for his cremation, a death certificate, and memorial. You can find the GoFundMe here.