By Mary O’KEEFE

It happened in an instant on Oct. 23. One moment Brett Tyler, 20, was going about his daily routine when a tiny blood clot obstructed an artery that fed the muscle of his heart and within moments he was gone. A one-in-a-million thing happened to a one-in-a-million kid.

Brett was attending Cal Poly SLO (San Luis Obispo); he was a business administration junior. He was a hometown kid and attended Mountain Avenue Elementary, Rosemont Middle School and Crescenta Valley High School.

He was a Boy Scout in Troop 319, an Eagle Scout whose project anyone who has been to the Rosemont Preserve can enjoy. He planted a hillside of trees – and planting trees in “Rockcrescenta” was not an easy task.

Brett was an award-winning member, officer and mentor, at CVHS Debate Club and was an announcer on CVTV.

He was the publicist and historian in Prom Plus Club, a club in which he was an integral part all four years of high school.

And he was a Fire House kid.

This was just while he was in high school. In his three years of college, he continued using his skills in public speaking and marketing to becoming the vice president of marketing in the Cal Poly Entrepreneurs Club. He employed the philosophy of “It is easier to ask forgiveness than to get permission” when he put his marketing skills to use at the Startup Career Fair 2017. His idea was to project a huge advertisement onto a building at his college. It worked and the Career Fair was very successful. Of course, the amount of work it took to create this successful event did not give him much time to create his own resumé; however, Brett was never one to let an opportunity pass by. He created a clever and bold resumé for a kid still in college that included a photo of his projected advertisement and, in part, stated, “I could bother you with the various accomplishments in my life, but I’ll just let the marketing for Startup Career Fair 2017 speak for my record.” In the brief passage that followed he wrote of his imaginative campaign and ended with “Let’s talk.” The resumé worked; he got a job writing the complete business plan for a new startup company.

There was always a mountain to climb, philosophically and literally. Brett began climbing mountains in Boy Scouts. He and his dad, Rob, were always looking forward to their next climb or their next hike. Rob and Brett helped other troops with climbs and rappelling. One time, when they were out at Joshua Tree, a boy rappelled about a fourth of the way down then froze. Without hesitation, Brett rappelled down next to him and gave him the confidence to continue. Brett talked him down, supporting him all the way.

Mountain climbing and the hikes he took with his family – mom Karen and brother Ivan – shaped his life. He never thought of backing down, no matter how high the climb or how many miles he had already traveled, and he was always there with a hand up for those who were afraid of slipping.

That was who Brett was. He had a wicked sense of humor, was the king of puns, had a positive attitude and a spirit that could lift anyone on even their worse day. Brett was also a friend, a loyal and good friend who was always there for others.

In his room at home he had a book that chronicled his life from kindergarten through high school graduation. He wrote of his teachers, his favorite subjects and his friends – where, although some names were added as he grew older, those same names were repeated year after year.

Brett loved reading, from Stephen King to historical books on aircraft and World War II. His grandfather was part of the “greatest generation” and Brett inhaled everything he could find on that era. In fourth grade, Brett felt that Pearl Harbor Day was being ignored and he would just have none of that. He created a project that included a film he made re-creating the bombing of Pearl Harbor using stop-motion photography. The film’s location was his bedroom, the carpet was the sea where his toy ships sailed and his plastic army soldiers were his actors. Brett had never filmed anything before, but it was his skill at detail work and his creative imagination that made the project something that was shared throughout his school.

That project also launched his love of filmmaking when, at 12 years old, he put his productions on YouTube under “harmlesskittywithuzi.” His moviemaking continued with his latest YouTube productions found at “Obviously Intended” and included short films, many that highlighted his love of pun humor.

That humor was a universal thread that bound all who knew Brett. He could hold the attention of several teenagers for over an hour while he wove his way through a joke that all knew would end with an “ah, Brett” but all were compelled to stay until the end. He was an artist, creating pencil sketches reflecting his pun humor.

Brett was someone who took what life handed him and made a joke, then found a way to move through it. His parents were building their home when Brett was a baby. The family lived in a small trailer on the property as the construction was being done. Brett’s first memories were of following various workmen throughout his framed house, asking lots of questions about what they were doing. To Brett, living on a construction site and sleeping in a trailer’s bathtub were just normal life.

When he was 5, construction on the home was done and his parents made the reveal of their new home an adventure for him to discover. They tied a string from his new room to his sippy cup in the trailer. He followed it all the way up to his amazing room and, in celebration, began jumping on his new bed.

He held himself to a higher standard that, at times, was stressful but there was always that little boy inside who jumped on the bed with excitement of a new adventure.

Brett is survived by his dad Rob, mom Karen and brother Ivan, along with aunts, uncles, cousins and so many friends. His memorial will be held at St. Luke’s of the Mountains, Sadler Hall, 2563 Foothill Blvd. on Saturday, Nov. 25 at 1 p.m.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations be made to Prom Plus, P.O. Box 851, Verdugo City, CA 91046.

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Personal reflections on Brett Tyler

From Mary O’Keefe:

Through the course of being a journalist, Robin and I have written many obituaries and memorials but this time was more difficult than ever before. It is not because we have had to stop a hundred times to dry our tears or to take deep breaths as we feel our hearts actually breaking, but it is how to end this story.

Brett Tyler passed away four days before his 21st birthday. He was a junior at Cal Poly SLO (San Luis Obispo) and his life could fill this paper plus more. Boy Scouts, Prom Plus, Speech and Debate, Entrepreneurs, friend, pun master, academic, marketing genius and on and on.

Many times after someone passes away, their life seems to be exaggerated with artificial praise and measured words, but that is not the case with Brett. When the word came that Brett had passed away, the wave of sudden and real pain that swept throughout those who knew him was real and touched the depths of our souls. This young man was genuine in everything he did. He had many friends but few that he considered good friends, those who he would let see beyond the sense of humor and kindness to all to the person who got his feelings hurt by those who were mean. At times he pushed himself too far to achieve his goals.

Brett was a Fire House and Prom Plus Club kid. His mom, Karen, said that one day she and Brett were on the beach bus when they met a young woman who asked Brett if he went to Crescenta Valley High School. From then on she began the pitch for Prom Plus Club. That young woman was my daughter Molly. He later came to the Montrose Movie Night and witnessed how Prom Plus Club volunteered. Once again, Molly walked over to him and invited him into the club. My daughter has done many smart things in her life and getting Brett to join PPC was brilliant. He became our historian and publicist but really he was a part of our foundation. Brett was at almost every event, only missing when he was at Speech and Debate or Boy Scouts, his two other passions. Our motto of, “We are the first to arrive, the last to leave and we carry all the tables” was exactly what Brett did. Even after he was in college he came back to help with both the Fire House youth center and Prom Plus Club. In fact this last Fourth of July, Brett, his mom, dad Rob and brother – and PPC member – Ivan helped carry not only all the tables but all the chairs at the end of the event at CVHS.

When my daughter Molly went off to college, the two stayed in touch, and my younger daughter Jessy became close to Brett. She looked toward him for guidance and for a good laugh. Every time he walked into the room, she couldn’t help but smile.

His pun humor is legendary, his positive attitude is known throughout CV but his sense of style raised him to unforgettable heights. Karen said it began when he went to a yard sale and bought a classic suit. From then on it was all about yard sales, and gently used clothing stores. It was during Brett’s reign at PPC when we started really dressing up for Montrose Movie Night. The club would wear clothes that matched the movie, or movie era, that was being shown. Brett was a dapper man in a 1940s style suit, and real retro in his white jacket and T-shirt, a la Don Johnson.

And that trend of style continued even at college, where he picked up tailored trends after a semester in London.

But Brett had style whether he was dressed in his best suit, including his fedora, or in his Boy Scout uniform.

From Robin Goldsworthy

As Mary wrote, when we learned of Brett’s passing, it was as if we were punched in the gut – and, I guess, we metaphorically were. Brett was an outstanding citizen of the Crescenta Valley community, the Cal Poly SLO community – any community in which he was a part. Because he brought to it a sense of humor, a compassion for others and an innate desire to be a part of something bigger.

I cry not only for the loss I feel, but also for the loss that the world suffered when Brett died because he had so much to offer. I guess we’re lucky in that while he was here he gave so much.

  Mary Okeefe