Margaret Wheeler Edwards

Margaret W. Edwards passed away in her sleep on Wednesday, June 8, 2016. She was a decades long resident of the Colonnades, and was treated with the utmost respect and courtesy by their staff, as well as the staff at Care Advantage, and Hospice of the Piedmont, who assisted in her care. Her family would like to thank all those involved for helping Maggie live and die with dignity and grace. Maggie was born in New York City in 1932, and was thereafter adopted by Charles and Gertrude Edwards of Trumbell, Connecticut. She was preceded in her death by her adoptive parents, stepmother Ora Edwards, brother Ransom Edwards and her former husband, Dr. Robert F. Vandell, MBA DBA, of the Darden School. Maggie attended the Ethel Walker School in Connecticut, and graduated from Vassar College in New York, earning a Phi Beta Kappa key. Although she was a lifelong learner, Maggie chose to end her formal education at this point in order to dedicate her time to raising her family. She is survived by a son, Chip Vandell, his wife Nancy, and their five daughters, of Fort Wayne, Indiana who affectionately referred to her as “Grammy E”, a daughter, Trudy Vandell & her partner, Margie Stein of Santa Rosa, California, and a son, Warren Vandell of Lynchburg, Virginia. Maggie expressed her generous soul by donating her time to causes she believed in, such as volunteering with Sally Meade at the SPCA. There, she adopted several four-legged friends, chief among whom was her now eternal companion, Pele. She also volunteered at a day care on Fifth Street. She made an impact on her many pupils, who were delighted to find her watching them in the Dogwood Parade years later. Maggie was an avid gardener who cultivated beauty and habitat more than food, although she was known to encourage a patch of long, thin strawberries by her back porch. She fed and watched the birds and squirrels, and was particularly successful at attracting the pileated woodpeckers to her yard. Once, in the sixties, she pulled a U-turn on Rugby Road to confirm a sighting of a red headed woodpecker. Maggie enjoyed travel, especially to the castles of Wales. She was also an accomplished poet, having been published in The Poet’s Domain among many other publications. Her words and actions touched many, and the echoes of her presence will be felt for years to come. Ms. Edwards requested no memorial services be held. She asks that you remember her kindly at your leisure. Solace may be sought in Psalms 121 and 46. The family requests that any memorial donations be made to the Charlottesville-Albemarle SPCA at 3355 Berkmar Drive. Condolences may be offered to the family at teaguefuneralhome.com