Andrew "Andy" Joseph Chersin III, 55, passed away on Tuesday, June 9, 2015, after a courageous battle with cancer, surrounded by his wife, children and family friends.

Andy was born on Dec. 8, 1959, to Andy and Jean Chersin in Artesia, Calif. Andy spent his childhood in Huntington Beach, Calif., playing sports, surfing, camping and fishing, and spent several summers in the Northwest hunting and fishing.

Andy met his wife, Tanya, when they were in seventh grade; it was love at first sight. After high school, Andy spent a year working in Alaska. He returned to California and convinced Tanya to marry him in 1983.

Andy started his working career in the oil fields in Long Beach, Calif. After several years, he trained and became a custom stair builder. Andy spent the next 25 years perfecting his craft in California, Idaho and Washington. Most recently, he spent three years working in the oil fields in North Dakota.

Andy left a legacy of a strong work ethic. He was not afraid to take on whatever job needed to provide for his family. He started teaching his children from a young age practical life skills, as well as teaching them to fish, hunt and camp. Andy taught them how to work hard and how to also enjoy life. He took his family on many adventures from camping trips to rock hounding, to road trips, whitewater rafting, trap shooting, golf, beach days, Angels baseball games and others too numerous to list.

His greatest legacy was the time he took to teach his children to love God. Andy loved missions and took his family on many mission trips to Mexico and spent three weeks in Tanzania, Africa. His faith in God was strong and carried him through the joys and sorrows of life, and took him securely into the arms of Jesus. Andy had the ability to 'think outside the box' and one of his mottos was - 'make it happen, find a way.' Andy was able to take a diverse group of people, bring them together and find their strengths to enable them to solve the problem at hand.

From a young age, Andy had a very kind and generous spirit. He was always sharing what he had - his knowledge, his time, his tools, his faith and even his lunch.

Andy is survived by his wife, Tanya; his children: Rachel, Andy, Sarah Prosch and son-in-law Jeremy, Caleb and Jeremiah; sisters Linda Caruso and husband Jerry of St. Peters, Mo., and Debbie Vasquez and husband John of Westminster, Calif.; brothers Ed Jackson of Evansville, Ind., and Dave Chersin; and numerous nieces and nephews.

The service for Andy will be at 11 a.m. on Saturday, June 13, at Grace Bible Church, 152 W. Prairie Ave., Coeur d'Alene.

In lieu of flowers, please make a donation to the Missions Fund at Grace Bible Church at the address listed above.

Yates Funeral Home has been entrusted with the care of final arrangements. Please visit Andy's online memorial and sign his guestbook at www.yatesfuneralhomes.com.