WILMINGTON — Ed Bailey passed away peacefully at home on March 8 with his beloved wife and daughter at his side. When first diagnosed with Parkinson’s Disease, Ed composed his own obituary.
When I look back over my life, I see some things that bring a smile to my face—and other things that make me wonder what in the world I was thinking about. Now’s the time to talk about the good things. And the best of all things, in my entire life, is my wife, Janet.
I first spotted Janet at a dance, and as E. B. White once wrote about a girl he had his eye on, she seemed to be in “enchanted territory.” There was something special about her from the start. And that first glance began the greatest thing to happen to me in my entire life! Every day of our marriage I felt blessed, and Janet let me know, every day, that she felt the same way. Enchanted territory, indeed….
Janet – thank you so much!
There are other good things in my life. My daughter, Jeannette, is the only person I can count on to laugh at my jokes! She puts a smile on my face, too. I am so pleased with her and with the marvelous job she has done raising my three grandchildren, Justin, Abigail and William! I love her dearly. My older daughter, Laura, passed away a number of years ago. I her infectious laugh and joy in simple things like playing basketball and getting treats from the vending machine.
My brother, Brooke, has always been a stalwart. I can count on him if I need something. He’s always there for me (except for telling me how a putt breaks if it means I win). And his lovely wife, Cathy, and their daughter and grandchildren, have been a joy to be with. Brooke and Cathy always included Janet and me in their family occasions. It was especially nice watching their grandchildren grow year by year.
By the way, I want to tell Brooke’s grandchildren my secret for beating them at croquet: Never play with them when they’re older than eight. They might win!
And now a few notable accomplishments in my life:
- I graduated from the Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs.
- I earned a PhD in English from the University of Iowa, specializing in how to write complex ideas clearly.
- I taught eight years at the Air Force Academy—wonderful years with great colleagues.
- I taught twenty years at Marymount University in Arlington Virginia. During this time, I worked as an independent consultant, helping, for example, scientific organizations to communicate their ideas to non-scientists.
- I wrote several really good books! They were mainly textbooks on writing and speaking, and they had the top publishers in the world: Holt Rinehart & Winston, Oxford University Press, Harcourt Brace, Prentice Hall, and a couple others. Combined, they sold over 400,000 copies. In fact, some of my books sold quite well for over 30 years. (If I can’t brag in my own obituary, when can I brag?)
- I climbed one of the most beautiful mountains in the world: three days on the 2000-foot vertical face of Half Dome. To make that climb, you have to be young, fit, and rather foolish. I was all three. That climb was in 1976. As I write this, I have enough difficulty just getting in and out of the car!
Well, all in all, I’ve been more than fortunate, haven’t I? So now it is time for me to close … the time for me to Wander down the lane … and far away….
And the time to thank all those, this final time, who have meant so much to me….
A Celebration of Life will be held on March 27th from 1 – 3 pm at the Landfall Dye Clubhouse, 1550 Landfall Drive, Wilmington, NC. At a future date, a memorial service and burial will be held at the U.S. Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs.
Charitable donations to honor Ed may be made to Lower Cape Fear Lifecare (1414 Physicians, Drive, Wilmington, NC 28401) or Hillsdale College (Hillsdale, MI 49242.)
