Community Corner

Hundreds Attend Paddle-Out Memorial for Local Diver

Andrew Brislen, 40, of San Clemente drowned while spearfishing in Laguna Beach last week.

Andrew Brislen was known for his great sense of humor, which came out when he played silly games with his children.

"He always did silly things with them—he had boyish charm," said Kim Wilmot of Irvine, second cousin to Brislen's surviving wife Michelle.

Brislen, who worked as an architect in Laguna Beach, ; his wife reported him missing. Night diving experts combed the kelp reefs, eventually finding his body.

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According to news accounts, Brislen had no pulse when divers pulled him out of the water, though paramedics performed extensive CPR.

There is speculation that he was tracking a fish among the sparse foliage of the kelp's bases, and then tried to surface by swimming straight up, where he may have gotten tangled in the canopy.

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At North Beach in San Clemente early Thursday morning, almost 200 of Brislen's friends and family, including his two young girls Addie and Sage, gathered at a memorial paddle-out.

Wilmot always remembered Andrew Brislen as even-tempered and upbeat.

"I've never seen him mad—ever," she said.

But it was perhaps Andrew Brislen's mischievous sense of humor that caused Michelle Brislen to remark, "Just watch all the chaos—he's going to love watching everyone try to get out."

Michelle Brislen paddled to the memorial in a kayak, which she towed on a trailer behind a bicycle from her neighborhood off Camino de los Mares. This was path well-worn by her late husband as he made his way to surf at North Beach, surfboard racked on the side of the bike, Wilmot said.

Anyone can donate to help the family out by visiting any Bank of America branch and asking to deposit to the Drew Brislen Family.

Another memorial will be held at the Ole Hanson Beach Club at 4 p.m. this afternoon.


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