Edward Shade Jors

Edward Shade Jors, 78, passed away Thursday, January 1st 2026 at his home in Indianapolis, Indiana. Ed was born on May 6,1947 in Mishawaka, Indiana to Charles and Muriel (John) Jors. He attended and graduated from Mishawaka High school in 1965 where he met Linda Springman who would become his wife of almost 58 years. Like a lot of guys in his neighborhood, he went to work as a young boy to help the family make money delivering papers or diving into ponds to retrieve and resell golf balls. He also learned to water ski on the St. Joseph River with his friends and by the time he was a young man he could slalom like a pro and even take off water skiing from a pier. In high school, he got a job at a body shop and spent too much time with guys older than him who kept him up much too late for school the next day. He survived high school because of the mentorship of World War 2 veteran and former Notre Dame Football player, Kenneth Armel. Mr. Armel introduced Ed to the print shop, which was to become his trade for most of his adult life. He would also let Ed sleep in the shop when he had been out all night.

After high school, Ed volunteered for the U.S. Navy and served almost all of his time at sea aboard the U.S.S. Boxer from March 17th, 1967 until January 15th, 1968. He got to see the world while on the Boxer and worked in the print shop as a lithographer. While he enjoyed seeing the world, his heart and soul was back in Indiana. Eddie married Linda on September 28, 1968. Their first home was in the guest house of his sister Nancy and her husband Bob Gonderman (a prominent South Bend lawyer), on Lake Tippecanoe where he put in piers as a side gig while he started school at Manchester University on the G.I. Bill. Uncle Bob was a man Ed deeply admired for the depth and breadth of his learning.

Ed walked into Cornelius Printing in Warsaw and asked for a job from George Cornelius who eventually convinced him to transfer to Indiana State University for their printing program. In Terre Haute, Eddie met lifelong friends David and Johnny Cornelius (George’s nephews), his dear friend, Richard “Dino” Hingsbergen and Coach Jack Brake. While there, the young couple had their first daughter, Shontel, in 1970. After graduating, George hired Eddie to his Indianapolis printing shop on East Washington where he worked hard and went with his buddies to the Golden Ace. They moved onto Hillside Avenue where he met the Kirkoffs, the Rentschs, the Cuniffes, the Traubs and many other great families at Christ the King. Kimberly, their second daughter, was born in 1973.

Ed worked in the printing business with Cornelius Printing, Indiana Bell, AT&T, and Sports Graphics. After retiring, he worked part time for Ryan Wrege at T.B.A. Oil and Warehouse, delivering autoparts all over the state of Indiana. He loved to work, to meet people and to share stories and kept at it until he was almost 75.

Lake Tippecanoe came back into their life in 1989 when they bought a boat and a trailer and started spending their summers in Cripple Gate, Payton Point and Neiberts. His sister in law C.J. and nephew and nieces Howie, LeAnn, Sheryl, and their families all spent time up there. There are far too many old and new friends and too many stories to list here but it has been a wonderful part of their life.

Enough of his history because his history doesn’t begin to tell you who Edward Jors was. He supported the American Legion for over 40 years, gave blood every month for almost all of his adult life, carried dog treats in his pocket for any dog he happened to meet. He fed the fish at Sylvan Ridge like they were family. He loved his Nieces and Nephew, Anna, Laura, Karen and Robbie. He was the best story teller and his friends in those stories made the exploits of King Arthur and Knights of the round table look pedestrian. According to Ed, Jim Cuniffe’s voice would have brought down the walls of Jericho after just 1 lap. Dick Rentsch could throw a softball the length of Hillside Avenue and David Decker had hands and forearms so big they could crush a watermelon. He loved to talk of Wilt Chamberlin, Oscar Robertson, Larry Highbaugh, the Indy 500 and especially Slick Leonard and the ABA Pacers. Like all great comedians, he could tell the same joke or story everyday if you let him and most people did, if just to see the toothy grin he got telling the punchline. He was stubborn as a mule, impatient to a fault and loyal as an old bloodhound. He was frugal, not as a miserly sin but as a virtue. He wore clothes until they were threadbare, hats far past their prime and duct taped slippers because he didn’t care what others thought so long as he had enough to buy The Boss (Linda) and his daughters what they wanted and needed.

And that brings us back to the three girls in his life. Spike (Linda), Butch J. Bulldog (Shontel) and Bud the Bear (Kimberly), he loved these three women, their husbands and his grandchildren (Thomas, Isaac and Milo) more than anything. Linda was his best friend and the love of his life. They were inseparable. He was so proud to go to Orchard and have lunch with Shontel and her kindergarten class. He loved that Kimberly looked like a model but could cuss you out like a sailor and was very proud of the career she has made for herself with Meridian Title. Appointments, home maintenance, rides to and from the airport at ungodly hours, going to his grandchildren’s events and acting as a sounding board with important life decisions…if they needed help, they could count on him. It truly was what he lived for.

There is not enough space to tell you of how many miles he jogged, how hard he worked out (he could do a variety of chinups and pullups into his 70’s), his love of cards (he and Linda made a formidable Euchre team), a 30 rack of beer for under $12 (it all came from the same vat), cutting the designer tags off of his clothes (they weren’t paying him to advertise), a good “normal” cup of black coffee and reading the newspaper. The stories of Ed Jors will grow like the Twelve Labors of Hercules and the Tall Tales of Paul Bunyon. You may not believe them all but those of us that were there, know them to be true.

He is survived by his wife Linda (Springman) Jors, his daughters (Shontel Fischer and Kimberly Riddle), son-in-laws (Scott and Jason) and 3 grandsons (Thomas and Isaac Fischer and Milo Riddle) . He was 78 years old. He was preceded in death by his brother Thomas and his sisters (Nancy Gonderman and Becky Burden), his parents and his grandparents (Thomas and Jenny John). The funeral will be private but there will be a Celebration of Life at the White River Yacht Club on March 7th at 3pm.