Alisa and John McMorris, Co-Presidents

Less than a year after their 12-year-old son, Andrew Spencer, was killed by a drunk driver while hiking with his Boy Scout Troop 161, Alisa and John wanted to put their grief into action. They made a plan to try and find a way to honor Andrew by giving back to their community along with creating a platform for meaningful change.

Shattered by the tragic loss of their son in the Fall of 2018, they found comfort and healing in learning to switch from parenting Andrew to parenting his legacy. From a simple meeting around the kitchen table with a framework of missions and logos written out on scraps of paper, the Andrew McMorris Foundation (AMF) was created. Alisa, John and Arianna began to find hope and joy again in working on the foundation.

Alisa and John believe stories like Andrew’s and so many other victims will be the precipice of change to the actions of people and legislators from around the world. They hope to prevent what happened to Andrew and his fellow scouts, by working with legislators on common sense DWI legislation and create Andrew’s Law. They will continue to walk and speak for Andrew as they believe he would want them to do. In addition to legislative changes, they want to honor Andrew’s life by creating opportunities for education and scholarships which is the cornerstone to the foundation’s mission.

Alisa and John both fell in love and graduated from Ithaca College. Alisa went on to get a degree from Touro College and works as a Physician Assistant at Northport Wellness Center. John also continued his studies by earning a Master’s Degree at Long Island University - C.W. Post and works as a School Counselor at the North Country Road Middle School in Miller Place.   

Native New Yorkers, Alisa and John live in the little north shore hamlet of Shoreham-Wading River with their daughter Arianna Marie and dog Shelby. 

Fly High Andrew!