Thousands memorialize fallen star

Barry Faulkner

NEWPORT BEACH - In forms of expression as unique and varied as the ways

he touched so many, approximately 3,000 family, friends, teammates,

coaches, teachers, classmates, rivals and community members gathered

Wednesday at Newport Harbor High School’s football stadium to celebrate

the life of Andre Stewart.

The record-setting senior running back, beloved by more for his warmth,

determination, style and charm than for his athletic talent, was killed

early Sunday morning when the car he was driving crashed into a guardrail

on the Pomona Freeway. He was 18.

From the podium directly in front of the Davidson Field bleachers, where

thousands watched Stewart rush for a school single-season record 2,404

yards and score 26 touchdowns to help the Sailors win the CIF Southern

Section Division VI championship last fall, dozens spoke glowingly of the

shy but engaging young man, embraced by this community upon arriving from

San Jose before his freshman year.

Music, cheers, applause, tears and laughter also punctuated the almost

90-minute ceremony.

But Stewart’s mother, Sonja William, in the street vernacular her son, an

amateur rapper, frequently used to communicate with peers, may have

captured the overriding sentiment of the sprawling mourners best.

“My baby was da bomb! Our baby was da bomb!” said William, her arm

interlocked with that of her husband, Dariel William, Stewart’s

stepfather.

Sonja William, with whom senior Mike Tunney, Stewart’s teammate and

weightlifting partner, said Stewart had the closest bond, related the

“mother’s intuition,” which awakened her from her sleep at 3:30 a.m. on

Mother’s Day, the exact time the accident occurred.

She also detailed the love and pride she held for her son, whom she

always regarded as special.

“I didn’t brag about him, but if I had a picture of him out at work and

other people commented on him, I would educate them,” William said. “He

made all of us so proud.”

Stewart’s stepfather, who noted “there’s no better place we could do this

today,” acknowledged his son’s passion for football and his devotion to

his teammates.

“We were Andre’s family, but he had a stronger family, which was those

guys over there,” he said, gesturing to the football team, assembled in

chairs adjacent to the podium, wearing their home blue jerseys.

Stewart’s No. 2 jersey was placed in front of the makeshift midfield

memorial, which included notes, photos, an autographed team football, and

other mementos.

“Sometimes I thought Coach (Jeff) Brinkley was his father,” William said

jokingly.

Finally, his stepfather offered: “If you never saw Andre play football,

you missed something.”

Brinkley, and assistant coach Mike Bargas, praised Stewart’s football

talent, as well as his progress off the field.

“As a player, he brought spirit into the competitive situation,” Brinkley

said. “The tougher the game, the more Andre gave of himself.

“He came to us as a shy, uncomfortable freshman and became a confident,

outgoing senior. We always say if we can improve a little bit each day,

big things can occur. Andre was on that road.”

Bargas called Stewart a vibrant, strong-willed soul, who will be

remembered for his personality, his character and his smile.

Brian Moore, Stewart’s uncle, thanked the Sea View League and CIF for

“providing a stage for Andre to dance on.”

Seniors Andy Kalanz and Robert Cole, as well as Tunney, spoke on behalf

of the football team.

Tunney said that when they were freshmen, Andre told him they would be

CIF champions as seniors.

“It wasn’t a half-hearted promise, not a ‘what if?’ or a dream. It was a

guarantee he put his stamp on. We did win that championship and Andre

became the greatest rusher to ever come through here. We celebrate that

to this very day.”

Cole, a 300-pound offensive tackle known to Stewart and his teammates as

“Big Daddy,” fittingly recalled a sign posted over the door of the

school’s weight room.

“The sign says, ‘How do you want to be remembered?’ ” Cole said. “I’m

comfortable in the way he’ll be remembered. This stadium was like a

second home to us. This place is where he truly shined.”

Pastor Earle Craig, who presided over the ceremony and whose sons Brad

and Morgan were Harbor teammates of Stewart’s, said, “Knowing Andre was

something we all came to enjoy. Those who knew Andre loved his (colorful)

clothes, his shoes, his style, and his classic greeting: ‘Yo, dawg.’ ”

Several other family members, including his father, Tim Stewart, and his

half-brother, Lamar William, a Newport Harbor freshman who escaped

Sunday’s crash with only minor injuries, also expressed their love for

Andre. They all said how they’ll miss him, but will remember and love him

always.

Moore spoke of Stewart’s mischievous childhood in San Jose, but how his

family always knew there was an inherent goodness behind that smile.

“Andre wanted to know, growing up, that he was a good person who was

well-liked,” Moore said. “He now knows, eternally, that he was a great

person who was loved.”