Vasseur Day Spa honoring Luke Ausdemore with fundraiser November 10th

By Matt McClanahan | November 5, 2010

Luke Michael Ausdemore’s Memorial Fund is partnering with Vasseur Day Spa, voted the best spa in San Diego by Channel 10, for a fundraiser.

Ausdemore died on Oct. 5, 2010 while diving for lobster in Mission Bay. The beauty parlor and day spa will offer discounted pricing on facials and will be raffling off a $1,000 gift certificate. Please refer to the bottom of the following article for more details.

Luke and his passing:

When Daniel Garcia and Luke Ausdemore went free-diving for lobsters one October night, the last thing Daniel expected to drag out of Mission Bay was his 25-year-old friend.

Earlier that evening, the two had been cruising on the interstate, strategizing their impending lobster hunt and singing along to the radio. Luke even played his harmonica at times and drummed on the steering wheel like it was one of the instruments he often played at church.

And it was just earlier that evening when Daniel and Luke had been walking through the parking lot of a Sport Chalet, that the two were laughing like two happy boys and singing loudly to the chorus of “Higher Love,” not caring if there were any voice critics around.

“In that moment, I thought it feels good to be silly,” Daniel wrote in an account of that day. “Luke made it okay to be silly.”

They went to Sports Chalet so Luke could buy a new underwater flashlight. It was going to be the fourth consecutive night Luke was to lobster dive. It was his new love, and Luke wanted to make sure he brought home a lobster feast for his family.

But Luke never came home that evening.

Daniel, who is an Escondido police officer, did all any man could do to save his friend’s life. He spotted Luke, face-up at the bottom of the bay just minutes after they had been free-diving. When Daniel saw Luke unresponsive in the water, he took a deep breath and went back under to save him. When Daniel reached him, he grabbed Luke’s armpits and managed to swim him to shore.

Luke had fallen unconscious underwater. Daniel attempted to resuscitate him.

“I just wanted him to breath air,” Daniel wrote.

But Luke was later pronounced dead, ironically in the same hospital he was born in.

Luke graduated from Oral Roberts, a Christian university, in 2007 with a degree in business management. Luke had long been interested in business, with his entrepreneurial skills developing at a young age. At 5 years old, Luke went into his neighborhood to collect money in a can for homeless people. After collecting $25, Luke decided he would keep the money. That is, until his father Jan Ausdemore found out. Luke was directed to give the money back to his neighbors. “Luke remembered how much each home had given, down to the penny,” his sister, Angel Ausdemore, said.

At 12, Luke bought an old fishing boat with the money he had saved from doing chores around the house. He fixed the boat up and sold it for a profit.

In his teens, Luke bought and sold motorcycles, and at 19, Luke purchased his first real estate investment. Luke then ventured into various business opportunities over the years in Tulsa, Oklahoma, where he had been living. Luke was visiting his family in Rancho Penasquitos when he passed.

Luke was a Christian who loved sharing his faith. Luke did mission work in Eastern Europe and was known by his family and friends to be selfless. He was a handsome, charismatic, single man who enjoyed dating women, but was searching for a wife.

Luke was also an encourager.

“Mainly I want to be an encourager,” Luke wrote in a blog post. “And what a cool way to spend time; encouraging people. I feel that I have spent enough time talking negative, being a critic, having bad attitudes, etc. Honestly I don’t feel like it added to my joy, fulfillment, or to other people’s.”

And Luke was good at encouraging people. One time, a friend of Luke’s was running a marathon but didn’t have any family to cheer him on. So Luke traveled to a different state to support his friend. They camped out under the stars together and Luke even bought his friend a new pair of running shoes.

“He chose to intentionally invest in people over the course of his life,” Angel said.

Luke also saw the beauty in life. When he and Daniel were driving to the spot where they’d be diving for lobster that defining evening, Luke halted a conversation to unknowingly admire what would be his last sunset. He mentioned the various colors of orange, red, purple, and gray strewn across the firmament.

“It was a beautiful sky,” Daniel wrote.

At one point, while the two were lobster hunting, and when both Daniel and Luke’s heads were above water, Luke referred to the flashlight he purchased earlier.

“Dude, the light is so bright,” he said excitedly.

Those were some of Luke’s final words.

Fitting.

Please help Luke’s family:

Luke has so many family members and friends that it required several services and memorials. Memorials were held in three different states to honor his life. Luke’s family could use your help in recouping the costs.

Vasseur Day Spa, which was voted the best spa in San Diego by Channel 10, will host two fundraisers for Luke Michael Ausdemore’s Memorial Fund. Ausdemore died on Oct. 5, 2010 while diving for lobster.

The beauty parlor will offer the “Go & Glow” facial this Wednesday, November 10, for $49 dollars, with full proceeds going towards Luke’s Memorial Fund. These facials are regularly $149. Call 619-236-9095 for an appointment.

Also, Vasseur Day Spa, located downtown in an 1887 Victorian home with views of the harbor, is raffling off a $1,000 gift certificate that is good for products and services. In addition to facials, the beauty parlor offers massages, waxing, teeth whitening, laser hair removal and Botox.

Raffle tickets are $20 each. You can mail a check payable to Barbara Ausdemore to the following address:

1930 First Avenue. San Diego, CA 92101 (note “Luke’s Memorial Fund” on your check)