Obituary of Stanley Edwards

Stanley Ewart Edwards Stanley Ewart Edwards passed away on Wednesday, May 12 at the age of 88. He will be sorely missed by his beloved wife of 60 years, Margaret Jean Edwards (nee Patterson), whose perennially youthful voice he had first heard on CBC Radio's "Singing Stars of Tomorrow" long before they met, and who ultimately instilled in him an appreciation of good music and of the arts. He also leaves his five sons: Paul (Helen Heacock) of Calgary, David (Agnetha Nilsson) and Douglas of Toronto, Jim of Montreal, and John of Calgary, as well as eight grandchildren. He was predeceased by his sister Jean of Calgary. Stan was born in Airdrie, Alberta on November 20, 1921, the son of Dr. W.F. ("Fred") Edwards and his wife Anna (McCracken). At 16 he left home to attend the University of Alberta, where he graduated with first class honours in Arts and Law at the tender age of 21. After serving with the Royal Canadian Navy in WWII, he obtained his LL.M. at Harvard, then lectured for two years at Osgoode Hall Law School. He married Jean shortly after joining the law firm Fraser Beatty in 1949, where he worked for an unprecedented 52 years, serving for a time as Chairman. He was appointed Queen's Counsel in 1962. Over the course of his career he served in numerous volunteer positions including as Chairman of the Canadian Tax Foundation, as President of the Metropolitan Toronto Board of Trade, President of Alpine Ski Club, President of the Estate Planning Council, and member of the Board of the Dufferin Arts council. He also served as a member of the Board of Governors of St. George's College, and was a member of the editorial board of the CCH Canadian Tax Reporter. Never one to sit idle, in retirement he wrote his highly-readable memoir, entitled "My Story", which recounts his singular and acute perspective on Canadian life over eight decades, his vivid, and occasionally moving, descriptions of noteworthy incidents, and a large stock of droll anecdotes from his boyhood on the Albertan prairie to chronicles in Corporate Canada. Last summer a blood disorder (MDS) became quite serious. Over the previous 87 years he had enjoyed remarkably good health. Stan's friends will remember a man who was morally correct without stuffiness whose teasing, laughter and corny jokes often filled a room with merriment. Perhaps most importantly, he taught his family the importance of virtue and honesty and of treating all people with the same high level of courtesy and respect. A private family service has taken place. A celebration of Stan's life will be arranged at the Arts and Letters Club at a later date. If interested in attending, please contact edwardsmemorial@gmail.com. If desired, donations in Stanley's name may be made to the Sunnybrook Foundation Palliative Care Unit, 2075 Bayview Avenue, Toronto M4N 3M5 or to Yorkminster Baptist Church, 1585 Yonge Street, Toronto M4T 1Z9. Condolences and memories may be forwarded through www.humphreymiles.com.