KARE 11 News Is Mourning the Death of Local Sports Producer Andy Trowbridge

Regular viewers of KARE 11 in Minnesota were somewhat shocked following the news that Andy Trowbridge, a sports producer who had worked with the station for 15 years, had died.

The news came quite suddenly, and Andy was only in his 30s at the time of his death. Following the news, many naturally wondered what Andy's cause of death was, and whether it was a surprise to those who knew him.

Andy's cause of death hasn't been disclosed yet. In an announcement about his death, KARE 11 wrote that he died following a "brief illness," but didn't offer any additional details. It's possible that his family is hoping to keep that information private, or that more details about Andy's death may be revealed in the days ahead.

Andy joined KARE 11 as a sports intern right out of college and never left, eventually moving on to work as a producer for weekend and weeknight sportscasts, as well as Vikings Extra. Andy worked regularly with Andy Shaver, a voice those on KARE 11 likely know quite well for his sports coverage.

"Andy worked his way to become our sports producer, a job he loved with all his heart," Randy said during a tribute to Andy on air. "Cool, calm, focused, but would always sneak in that sly grin, even when there was chaos all around him. He relished that role. There wasn't a job too big or too small. He would get it done, and done right. Andy was sweet, kind, thoughtful, funny, the kind of person that could be your life-long friend."

In lieu of sending flowers, Andy's family asked that donations be made to the Randy Shaver Cancer Research & Community Fund. Given that Andy worked primarily behind the scenes for the news station, many regular viewers may not have known much about him. After seeing the impact he had on his co-workers, though, it's clear that Andy was a gift to those he worked with.