About Friends for A_Dog Foundation

Our mission & HISTORY

DJ/Turntabalist Andy "A_Dog" Williams was the epitome of generosity, positivity and curiosity. His passion and innovativeness in music, skateboarding, and art earned him recognition as a musical talent and cultural icon. After Andy was diagnosed with a particularly aggressive strain of Acute Myeloid Leukemia (AML) in December 2012, he underwent extensive chemotherapy, but his only possible long term cure was a bone marrow transplant. 

Because of Andy's Filipino and African American mixed ethnicity, he faced the seemingly impossible challenge of finding a bone marrow donor, with his odds of a match being 1 in 20 million. Andy's community, family, and friends gathered as "Friends for A_Dog", fundraising and doing bone marrow drives in cooperation with Be The Match. By some miracle a bone marrow match was found in 2 months, providing so much hope at such a critical time. 

After Andy passed away in 2013, FFA_D transitioned into a 501c3 non-profit. Our efforts with bone marrow drives and education continue and we expanded our focus to encompass a variety of programming and scholarships in the arts and skateboarding. We aim to keep Andy's legacy thriving in all the areas he was passionate about by offering free programming accessible to  area youth, particularly those from underserved populations. 

Every year on the last Saturday in August we put on a major city-wide event, "A_Dog Day", featuring skateboarding, art demos, and multiple performances in music, dance and theater: a true celebration of Andy's lasting influence on his community.