COOPERSTOWN – At Noon on April 29, 2022, Ann Lois Edwards passed away unexpectedly but peacefully, of natural causes, at home, with her husband at her side. She was in her eighty-first year.
Born February 22, 1942, in Little Falls, New York, she was the daughter of the late Francis J. Ashe and Elizabeth Dudik Ashe. Her paternal ancestry descended from Germans who had made the Great Swabian Trek down the Danube, and on her maternal side from Slovaks who made Little Falls “the second Myjava”. All her grandparents were immigrants.
Lois graduated from St. Mary’s Academy in Little Falls in 1960 and the State University College at Oswego in1964 with a degree in Elementary Education. She received her Masters degree from Marywood College in Pennsylvania.
She met her future husband in kindergarten, tolerated him until well into high school when they became close friends and were married on June 25, 1966, at St. Mary’s Roman Catholic Church (now Holy Family Parish) in Little Falls.
Lois taught briefly in Dolgeville and Cooperstown before moving to Pennsylvania and spending the rest of her career with the Montoursville Area School District. She and her husband retired back to Cooperstown in the year 2000, building the home that she had envisioned in the Town of Middlefield.
The consummate mother, she supported all her boys’ activities as they grew up. A Cub Scout Den leader, swimming official and Montoursville’s original soccer Mom, she did whatever had to be done without need for recognition.
She was an excellent cook who could do wonders with a pound of hamburger or a chicken breast, and no holiday was complete without her Slovak pastry. Pinena paprika, Kapustnica, Sovenske Palacinky, and Kolache were all within her repertoire.
She was a very talented seamstress, making her own clothes from age 12 until she was about 40 years old, then choosing to purchase clothes, deconstruct them at home, and reconstruct them “properly”. She was active for many years in the Fenimore Quilt Club and many family and friends were the recipients of her handiwork. On occasion friends and family called on her for “emergency” clothing repair. She usually accommodated them, but she did not encourage it.
Lois was a Life Member of the American Wine Society, a member of the Williamsport, Pennsylvania Chapter, and, along with her husband, was the founding Co-Chair of the Glimmerglass Chapter of the American Wine Society in Cooperstown. She was a member of the Town of Middlefield Historical Association.
Lois’ career long focus on teaching reading led to her favorite retirement activity, volunteering at the Cooperstown Village Library which gave her the opportunity to meet many new friends as well as interesting people.
She is survived by her husband of 56 years David D. Edwards; their son Brian, his wife Erika and grandson Benjamin in Essex Junction, Vermont; their son Mark, his wife Lisa and granddaughters Lauren and Claudia in Portland, Oregon; her brother Ronald and his wife Patricia in Arden, North Carolina; and her aunt Dorothy Frederick in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, as well as numerous cousins and their offspring.
She was a communicant of St. Mary’s “Our Lady of the Lake” Roman Catholic Church in Cooperstown.
The
Edwards family will receive family and friends from 5-7 p.m. Monday,
May 9, 2022, at the Connell, Dow & Deysenroth Funeral Home in
Cooperstown.
A
Mass of Christian Burial will be offered at 11 a.m. Tuesday, May 10,
2022, at St. Mary’s “Our Lady of the Lake” Roman Catholic
Church in Cooperstown with Fr. David Wm. Mickiewicz officiating. A
reception will follow.
In lieu of flowers the family suggests a donation to your local Food Bank, before sharing a bottle of wine with friends.
Funeral arrangements are under the care and guidance of the Connell, Dow & Deysenroth Funeral Home in Cooperstown.
If you would like to send condolences to the family, send an email to Connell, Dow & Deysenroth. We will forward your comments to the family. If you would like to send flowers in memory of the deceased, contact Mohican Flowers at (607) 547-8822, or A Rose is a Rose at (607) 264-3100.
