Edward Walsh

Edward J. Walsh died peacefully with his wife Rosemary, daughter Joani, and son Martin on Tuesday, September 5, 2023. “Eddie” as he was known to grandchildren, Coleman and Zoe, has been so many things to so many of us … a wonderful husband, father, grandfather, father-in-law to Joani’s husband Joe McCammon and Martin’s wife Tricia Jefferson, spiritual counselor, practical jokester, lover of water fights, mystic, philosopher, professor, friend and most amazingly unique human being imaginable who was always fully present whenever anyone needed him. At the early age of 3, he had such an outsized personality and mischievous streak that it got him labeled the “neighborhood pest” by a disgruntled neighbor. He loved the label.

He was raised Catholic and born near a ball field so God and baseball were his passions early on. He was such a dominant pitcher in his youth that, in the days before Major League Baseball had a draft, Eddie received an offer from the Baltimore Orioles to join their farm system. He recalled blissful teenage years, adored his father and mother and often spoke of the lively and loving household in which he grew up. The relationships he had with each of his siblings – Loretta, Jeanne, Terry, John, Eileen, and Jim – were fundamental to him becoming the amazing person we all love so dearly.

The former paper boy, caddy, electrician’s helper, and plumber’s apprentice decided to enter the Maryknoll Fathers missionary society rather than become a professional ballplayer. This was a seminal time in Eddie’s life and his experiences at Maryknoll – both positive and negative – deeply influenced his perspective on life. He became an ordained priest but clashed numerous times with reactionary Church authorities, the final straw being when he defied Church leadership and sided with students and African American leadership in the community while at the College of St. Thomas in Minnesota to hold a march in honor of Martin Luther King, Jr. in the wake of his assassination.

With the Civil Rights Movement and the Vietnam War dominating headlines and personally impacting him, Eddie’s interests turned to studying and understanding social movements in society. Eddie applied for and received a National Institute of Mental Health fellowship to study for a doctorate in sociology at the University of Michigan in the fall of 1969. As the old adage goes “when one door closes, another door opens” and the new door led not just to liberation from the Church but to his future wife Rosemary. They bonded over their world views and Eddie quickly recognized what an amazing, intelligent, beautiful, empathetic, and caring person she is. Neither of their families were thrilled with the decision of the former priest and former nun to get married so they wed in a simple ceremony with their dear friend Harvey Egan presiding in an Ann Arbor chapel on December 28, 1970. Eddie and Rosemary then had their first child, Joani, who was born on October 19, 1971 and, a couple of years later, Martin, on July 31, 1973.

Eddie would not want us to focus on his academic career as a sociologist studying social movements and environmental justice so we will simply share that he was a brilliant and beloved professor, and author of a number of important books such as Dirty Work, Race and Self Esteem addressing the intersection of race, occupation and self-esteem, Democracy in the Shadows which focused on citizen mobilization efforts in the wake of the accident at the Three Mile Island nuclear power plant and Don’t Burn it Here which involved eight case studies of proposals to build waste-to-energy trash incinerators and local grassroots opposition movements. He was a serious academic but did not take himself seriously, such as showing up in a gorilla costume to liven up a meeting at the University and orchestrating countless elaborate practical jokes.

He also wrote many letters to the editor at the Centre Daily Times on a range of subjects over the years that continue to be treasured by his family. On a more personal level, Eddie’s letters and emails to family and friends, handwritten inscriptions or dedications in books, recommendation letters, and thoughtful remarks at key life events remain treasured gems of wit, wisdom and love.

Eddie and Rosemary decided to retire together in 2002. After they dedicated their early retirement years to successfully “fighting the dump” as he referred to the trash incinerator that was proposed for the local community, Eddie turned to a project that would become his magnum opus. Eddie and his siblings had been surprised to find nine five-year diaries from his mother tucked away in a shoebox which he used to write a book Loretta’s Loving Legacy that captures the story of his family over five decades. We continue to find more of Eddie’s wonderful unpublished writings as we are going through his things.

Even more than his writings, Eddie’s most important work was with the people he encountered in life whether they were students, family, friends, teammates, opponents, or strangers. It is incredible and inspiring to hear how he was there for so many people at so many critical moments in their lives. He was also an avid basketball player for most of his life – playing pickup ball and talking trash on the court well into his 70s – and treasured the friendships he made with folks at Rec Hall and the YMCA. He loved the community at the “Y” and often referred to it as his “tavern, church, and gym”.

Eddie was so much fun to be around and was the life of any party. If music was playing, Eddie was dancing. He danced with more confidence than rhythm and without a care in the world about what anyone thought. But his joking and fun-loving personality masked a deeply serious thinker who was fascinated with both science and spirituality and had strong political views. He read voraciously about quantum physics, cosmology, consciousness, relativity (general and special), politics, and spirituality. And, yet, as well-read and wise as he was, he seemed to prefer conversations with people who didn’t view themselves as self-important. He believed deeply in working to heal racial divisions.

His final lesson, surrounded by his loving family, was showing how to die with grace and in peace. On the day he was dying, Joani and Rosemary were by his side. Eddie waited until Martin arrived from Washington, DC and then took his last breath about twenty minutes later. Eddie considered himself a “mystical agnostic”. He was not certain about what happens when we die but he “strongly believed in the unseen” as he would say. In the minutes before taking his last breath he struggled to say “the greatest love” to all of us gathered. Whether he was referring to the love he was leaving behind or the love he was encountering in what we call death, we’ll leave to the reader to consider.

What a gift of a man.

In lieu of gifts or flowers, please feel free to make a contribution to any cause or organization in your area working to promote social justice and democracy. We want to thank everyone at Foxdale Village and Grane Hospice for their love and care. There will be a service and celebration of Eddie’s life at Foxdale Village in State College on Sunday October 8th, 2023 from 1-5pm and a separate one in the Philadelphia area later in November for family living closer to that area.