Andrew McCamley Award for Excellence in Teaching

Andrew was my older brother by fifteen months. Our father was in the Army and Andrew was born in Hong Kong and I was born in Libya. We all moved to Germany where we lived until aged approximately 6 and 7 and, after our parents separated, we returned to the UK and lived in Coventry. All of Mum’s side of the family lived in Coventry and she was born there during the Second World War and grew up there with our grandparents and her siblings.

Andrew and I were inseparable as we grew up together with our Mum and he was an excellent big brother. Very early on, Andrew developed an interest in the natural world and became a campaigner against animal vivisection. He joined CND (and proudly wore his badge!) He wore huge hand knitted jumpers made by Mum and liberally splashed himself with patchouli oil. He always, always wore a brown duffle coat. He became an ardent astronomer and taught himself how to play the guitar.

He had a dabble at amateur dramatics bellowing his way through “I am the very model of a model Major General” in Pirates of Penzance at the Butts in Coventry. He adored long distance walking and completed the Pennine Way. He loved fishing and went regularly although his habit of keeping maggots in the fridge overnight didn’t go down too well with Mum.

Andrew went through a stage of being vegetarian during his university life and this progressed into veganism for a short time. This predated the vast choice of foods available now and he soon tired of eating lentils! He remained vegetarian until he completed his university life and the smell of a bacon sandwich enticed him back to becoming a meat-eater!

Andrew was a gifted hockey player and rugby player and represented York University. He cycled or skateboarded everywhere, even after (finally) passing his driving test as he thought this was kinder and more respectful to the environment. Again, this predated the knowledge about global warming and carbon footprints that exists today.

Andrew was a committed Christian who believed in kindness, respect and dignity to all irrespective of sex, race, religion. He was always so interested in people and loved hearing their story, thoughts or experience. He hated bullying in any guise and regularly stood up for and spoke out for others.

He was passionate about education and fervently believed in practising what he preached. Andrew became a Sunday School teacher at our local church in Canley (not far at all from the main campus) and this gave him such a sense of pride and purpose. He loved passing on knowledge through lessons, discussion, mentoring and guiding. He was a positive male role model to children who had a disadvantaged start to life.

Andrew left Coventry after sixth form and went to York University. He was the first in our family to have gone to university. This was an amazingly proud moment for Mum and I. Andrew hated being the centre of attention and was really ill at ease during his graduation day and then, later when he attained his PhD. He especially hated his photograph of his PhD ceremony as he thought he looked daft in his hat. He expressly asked us not to display the photograph but, of course, it remains in pride of place even today. (The shirt and tie that Andrew is wearing in his degree ceremony photograph is exactly the same as the one he wore later in his PhD ceremony. Andrew was no spendthrift and he bought the tie from Oxfam in Coventry City Centre for the princely sum of 20p!!! He loved a bargain!)

After attaining his PhD from Sussex, Andrew chose to continue his research and to become a lecturer and was offered positions in Hanover, Washington and Warwick University. I actively encouraged him to go to Washington (for purely selfish reasons i.e. holidays) but he refused stating that “England had provided him with his education and it was now time for him to give something back.” I did clarify with him if he was absolutely sure before he accepted his position at Warwick! He was.

When Andrew returned to live in Coventry as he undertook his new role at Warwick University, he (still) hadn’t passed his driving test. I remember that the first Christmas he was immersed in an experiment that required him going into the lab every four hours to turn a crystal he had identified in a lit glass box. From my (non Chemistry) perspective, this involved him placing his hands into a pair of black rubber gloves that were on the outside of the glass box and minutely turning the crystal and recording various readings. Then we would leave the lab only to return four after that and then four after that etc etc.

Andrew completely hoodwinked me on Christmas Eve by asking me if I “could just drop him down to the lab, wait for him a few minutes and then bring him back home” for his very important experiment. Of course I agreed thinking little of it……however I did have a sense of humour failure at midnight on Christmas Eve, 0400 and 0800 on Christmas Day! Andrew was dedicated and diligent without compromise.

Andrew was enormously proud of his position at Warwick and during summer when it became intolerably hot inside the lab, he regularly took his students outside to the grounds where he sat on a wooden table surrounded by his students and conducted his lectures there. That wooden table top was removed and placed into the lobby of the Chemistry Department at Warwick University in memory of Andrew and has the names of all recipients of the Dr Andrew McCamley Award for Teaching etched upon it.

Andrew got engaged to be married in 1996 and, as he had an abject horror of being the focus of everyone’s attention. he refused point blank to have a party and he and his fiancée went on holiday to Crete to celebrate together. I dropped them off at the airport, hugged him and told him I would be there to pick them up two weeks later. My brother drowned in the sea aged 31 years. It was then, and remains now, utterly devastating.

As time goes by, memories fade and fewer people knew my brother. I find myself actively introducing his name into conversations, or remembering an incident with those few in order to keep his name and memory alive. My husband and I have a daughter and when she was little and frightened during a thunder storm, I would say “That’s Uncle Andrew conducting his experiments.” She now says this herself!

When the Dr Andrew McCamley Teaching Award was introduced shortly after his death, our Mum presented it. However, after a few years, it became too overwhelming for her and so I very proudly took up the mantle. Due to the Coronavirus pandemic, it has not been possible to do so.

My brother loved learning, loved teaching others and empowering them to achieve their fullest potential. He made a huge impact to all around him. He was deeply respected in his academic life but, as his sister, he was utterly adored by his family. The Teaching Award is so important to us as a means of keeping Andrew’s legacy alive. As I said earlier, he was an excellent big brother who I miss daily.

~ Heather Tobin MBE (née McCamley), 2021