For our part, Andrew and a fellow membe=
r of the order, Br. Alfred, invited us to their house for coffee literal=
ly the day after we arrived here. We landed in Madang on Saturday and S=
unday, still with a bit of jet lag, went to church where we met them. R=
ight after service they invited us over and have occupied a warm spot in=
our hearts ever since. In only a few short months we've come to co=
nsider them as very good friends.

During the funeral we heard a=
nd learned even more about Andrew's background. Raised in a large f=
amily (nine siblings) he attended high school run by the Christian Broth=
ers and decided there to join the order. Through a career of increasing=
responsibilities, he moved from primary, through secondary to tertiary =
education. Here at Divine Word University he was the Vice President of =
Student Services and I must say one of the pivotal leaders of the Univer=
sity. More importantly, because of who he was, he was dearly loved by y=
ears and years of students who passed through the school. They said you=
could always take your problem to Br. Andrew and he would do whatever h=
e could to help.

We knew he was the Vice President of the Madan=
g Chamber of Commerce. We learned he had played a key role in the found=
ing of the Youth Rugby League sports teams in the area. We heard many f=
unny stories (he was a fun guy!) and laughed until it hurt.

And=
rew was also a large man. There were 12 to 14 pall bearers, and you cou=
ld see it was a lot of work to carry the casket. Besides the viewing on=
the vigil, there was a funeral Mass and a motorcade to the cemetery com=
mittal service. The funeral was conducted by the Archbishop. In additi=
on to the DWU community, it was well attended by notable members of the =
Madang community, representatives of key government offices, and others =
from the many activities in which Andrew was involved. Three of Andrew&=
#39;s siblings traveled from Australia to attend.

We heard that=
when they learned of his death, his family immediately said he must be =
buried in Papua New Guinea, the country he loved and for which he had wo=
rked so long in raising the standard of education.

We also lear=
ned about funerals here. The attire for funerals is black and white; ma=
ny wore both colors while some were dressed entirely in one or the other=
. There was much loud wailing and crying — quite emotional. The entir=
e motorcade was preceded by police cars with sirens on the whole way.
I am certainly not alone here at Divine Word University, or in Ma=
dang, or in much of Papua New Guinea, when I say we will miss Andrew Sim=
pson and recall him fondly.