Eddie was born on September 12, 1946 in Mobile, Alabama to William and Marguerite Serda. He graduated from McGill High School in 1965 and from the University of South Alabama with a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration in June 1970. He married Judy Kelley of New Orleans, Louisiana on November 7, 1970 and thus began 52 remarkable years together. He served as a 1st Lieutenant in the Army as a helicopter pilot and Installation Club Manager of the NCO & Enlisted Men’s Club in Tuy Hoa, Vietnam from 1971 to 1973 until he returned from the war to Fort Polk, Louisiana where he continued as Installation Club Manager. He was honorably discharged in 1976 having served in all duties and capacities admirably.
When he came back home to Mobile, Alabama in 1974, he began working at Radcliff Materials which later became Dravo Basic Materials. Leaving Dravo, he went and helped established a related company called Clark Sand Company in 1990 (which was later bought by Fairmount Minerals) that he operated for 12 years. In November 2002, he bought the local plant in Mobile from Fairmount and established his own company called Mobile Abrasives which has been hugely successful due in large part to Eddie’s keen business acumen and winning personality.
Eddie was larger than life – a breath of fresh air. He was one of those special people you liked the minute you met him. He was the eternal optimist, always positive, with an infectious personality that just drew you to him. He was full of life and loved every minute of it. He was so much fun and made you laugh; just being around him made you happy. He would help anyone who needed it with an unmatched kindness and generosity and a genuine concern for everyone he cared about. But the thing that mattered most, the thing that brought him the greatest joy in life, was just being around his family – his wife, his children, and his grandchildren.
These were the things that created a legend and left a legacy for many to remember.
Eddie is survived by his wife Judy, son Matthew Serda (Katia), son John Serda, and daughter Kelley Bitzer (Robb), grandchildren Kodi, Alli Claire, and Roe Bitzer, granddaughter Sophia Serda, his brother William Serda, sister Joan Serda, sister Joy Kane (Jack), sister Mary Anne Lackey, and brother Michael Serda (Becky).
A Mass of Christian burial will be held Thursday, March 3, 2022 at St. Mary’s Catholic Church at 11:00 a.m., with interment to follow immediately afterwards at Catholic Cemetery, and then a reception to celebrate Eddie’s life at the Bragg-Mitchell Mansion around 2:00 p.m. Remembrances may be made in the form of flowers sent to St. Mary’s Church or Bragg-Mitchell Mansion, or in contributions to the American Heart Association or the American Lung Association
