Edward O. Rice

My Eddie luv – Loved the Lord with all his heart. Kind, generous,

encouraging – he didn't have to work at it, that's who he was. He

wouldn't hesitate to offer help to anyone who asked, and even if you didn't ask. Always supporting ministries that brought people to the Lord.

If you told me I would marry a man that had been married 4 times, I

would have said no thank you. He spent many years smoking and

drinking which made it difficult to maintain relationships and hard to keep a job. He's been a roofer, butcher, cheesemaker, laundromat owner, census taker, hospital volunteer (when his back was too painful to work), pool maintenance and other jobs I can't remember. He realized he couldn't continue this way of life and spent many hours walking the streets of Ft Lauderdale and praying. He accepted Jesus Christ as his savior and at that moment he no longer had a desire to drink and smoke. He was delivered, a changed man, the man I knew and loved. He made me feel important, seen and loved always.

Eddie had insatiable curiosity, wanted to know how things worked and would find a better way of doing everyday tasks. He started fixing pumps and motors in his carport and built his business from the ground up.

Eddie always loved saving and collecting things. While driving down the street, if he saw a tool on the road, he'd have to go back and pick it up. ”You can never have too many tools” he said. In younger years, he hunted for and collected arrowheads. Coin collecting was a lifelong hobby. In more recent years, he used a metal detector to find treasures.

He loved animals, whenever a stray showed up, he wanted to keep it. Of course, birds were his favorite. He built aviaries several times in his life. He was especially excited if he found a bird egg. He'd take it home, hatch it and raise it. He told me stories of raising a pigeon, Barney, who would follow him everywhere. When Eddie would leave home, Barney would fly along side the car then hang out with other pigeons until he saw Eddie get in his car and fly along side the car to go back home. I was able to join in the fun when he found a mud hen egg and we raised her.

Eddie loved my family as his own and didn't hesitate to jump in and help whenever he could. He also most always stopped to give to the homeless.

Eddie was so blessed to be able to play John the Baptist in the

Christmas Pageant, and I imagine he's already found him in Heaven to see if he did it right!

I'll be forever grateful to the Lord for bringing us together. He took

me out of my comfort zone, made me stronger and more confident in my abilities. Our devotions and prayer time kept Jesus the center of our relationship.

We had great adventures…Building a log home in NC, and many Camping trips to explore this great country of ours. I'm most grateful that the Lord called Eddie to be his own and I know he's WALKING on streets of gold and is no longer in pain.