“In the summertime, I figure, the earlier you make the cambros, the colder they will be. It takes a few hours to get cold, and I want it to be ready in case there is an early morning fire. Besides, I figure I miss the traffic.”

 

It’s that selfless attitude, Ed’s subtle sense of humor, and his pride and dedication that his team will miss. But mostly they will just miss his presence.

In the last year, doctors diagnosed Ed with a debilitating illness that forced him to hang up his DAT vest. Although it is not a terminal illness, the disease makes it difficult for Ed to keep up with even routine daily functions.

“One doctor says it’s Parkinson’s disease; one says it’s PSP or Progressive Supranuclear Palsy. Either way, it just makes it hard to get around. I hate to give up the Red Cross, but the time came when I couldn’t do what I used to be able to.”

Since he began volunteering in 2002, Ed has done a lot for the Red Cross. Retiring from his career as an electrical wholesaler in October of 2001 and still feeling the impact of 9/11, Ed became interested in volunteering. He took a position doing patient transport at Missouri Baptist Medical Center (where he still is able to answer phones), and then eventually found the Red Cross. Ed worked a few blood drives and other odd positions before finding his home with the “notorious” Thursday DAT crew.

“I didn’t know what I was getting myself into.” But luckily for Ed, the job and the people were a perfect match.

 

“I am so lucky to work with the people I got- Judy Jehling, Dick Bylund, and Gladys Stannard. We all came from different backgrounds, but it just worked. You’d be fortunate enough to meet people like this once in a lifetime, but to have the opportunity to work with them-it’s a double blessing. Seeing my team work a fire scene is something special. They should be the volunteers of the month, not me. I’m not in their league.” 

 

According to teammates Judy Jehling and Dick Bylund, the feelings are mutual.

“Ed is fantastic. Here’s somebody with a debilitating disease and he never complains about anything. He’s always right there along with us. He taught us a lot about bravery. Ed is an honor to work with and a true friend,” shared Judy.

Team member Dick Bylund describes Ed as a “dynamite guy with a great attitude.”

The people are what Ed will miss most about the Red Cross. That and solving the “major issue of the day”-where to go to lunch. “We never knew where to go to lunch. I ate places I never knew existed.”

Although Ed is retired from the Red Cross, he will remain in active status in case less physically-demanding volunteer opportunities arise.

 

“Volunteering with the Red Cross is something I will never forget. I’m sad to give it up.”

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Lindsey Weber is the Marketing and Communication Associate for the American Red Cross St. Louis Area Chapter.