Bethany Hamilton Confirms 3-Year-Old Nephew Died After Drowning: ‘Andrew Is and Was Loved So Well’

Bethany Hamilton’s 3-year-old nephew, Andrew, has died following a drowning accident.

“The Lord has received my sweet nephew Andrew into his beautiful care,” Hamilton, 34, wrote via Instagram on Saturday, October 19. “While my family and I will miss him dearly, we trust that his joy is full with Jesus.”

She added, “Here is a prayer of faith that was prayed by my brother, and our whole family, this last week. This prayer paints so incredibly what it is to have faith. Faith is to trust that God’s will for our life is greater than our own. Thank you all for the love, prayers and support in this trying time. Be blessed.”

Hamilton shared a personalized prayer for Andrew’s recovery in the comments section. She also reposted her tribute onto her Instagram Story, writing, “Andrew is and was loved so well. His joy is full in the Lord.”

The pro surfer confirmed one week earlier that Andrew, one of the sons of her brother Timothy and wife Kyah, accidentally drowned. In an October 12 social media note, Hamilton revealed that Andrew was taken to a local hospital in Hawaii but he still had “a heartbeat and [had] fight in him.”

Timothy shared an obituary for his son on Instagram earlier on Saturday, noting that Andrew succumbed to his injuries following the accident and the “best life-saving interventions had been exhausted.”

Andrew is survived by his parents, five siblings — Thomas, Joshua, Matthew, Noelle and John — as well as grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins.

“It hurts terribly and we miss Andrew more than words can express,” Timothy wrote in a Saturday Instagram message. “But we do not mourn as those who have no hope. We rejoice in the certain hope of the glory of God, into whose name Andrew was baptized, whose precious blood washed Andrew clean and made him a child and heir of heaven.”

He added, “Andrew sees Jesus as He is, face to face. He knows Jesus fully, even as he was fully known and loved by Jesus his whole life. Glory be to God for all things.”

Hamilton is a professional surfer, who lost her arm in a shark attack at the age of 13. Her story inspired the 2011 movie Soul Surfer, in which actress AnnaSophia Robb played the athlete.

Hamilton herself is a mother of four, sharing sons Tobias, 9, Wesley, 6, and Micah, 2, as well as daughter Alaya, 16 months, with husband Adam Dirks.