At the beginning of September, I lost a dear friend and fellow nerd, Andy Sutorius. He passed away in his sleep from a heart condition that he kept very private.

Our friendship goes back about 20 years, and we shared a meal together on just about every trip I took to corporate headquarters. He would always choose the restaurant, but he would never let me pay.

He was that big, lovable goofball we all know. When he lived in the mountains, he almost sent me off the road as I tried to follow him at breakneck speeds around switchbacks he knew like the back of his hand. This was before either of us had kids, by the way.

Last month I was in Huntersville and I met up with his wife, Heather. We chatted for a couple of hours and she and their daughter, Alexis, are doing well in spite of everything. Alexis is in STEM and is a fan of the arts – she was just cast by Intune School of the Arts in Annie, which will run in December (tickets).

Now, this is where you come in. I don’t ask for a lot of help from my friends and colleagues, but I would absolutely love for you to help me contribute to the trust fund that has been set up for Alexis’ education.

No amount is too small. Want to send a dollar? I think that’s awesome, because every dollar counts. Just e-mail me at aaron.bertrand@gmail.com, or message me on Facebook or Twitter, and I’ll give you all the info you need.