Edward R. Vitarius

The thing you might not have guessed meeting Edward Robert Vitarius was about the pies. You'd know by his lanky frame and confident stride that he remained active. One handshake and a smile, and you'd imagine he'd been in sales. His voice might betray his youth in Kingston, NY, where he was born February 9, 1935, to John and Elizabeth (Biri) Vitarius. If his garage door was open, the neatly arrayed keys and tools might suggest he'd run motels for a time, and the parallel tracks of fishing rods would point toward his favorite pastime. Rotating beds of seasonal flowers advertised his passion for gardening, and his bird feeders were always full.

Ed's neighbors in Brookside Gardens knew that he cared ceaselessly for his wife Barbara, disabled by a stroke. (He loved her so much he married her twice.) They would chat with him and pet his beloved dogs, Maddie (a white Scottie) and Sadie (a white...Terrier, maybe?) on their twice-daily tours. He spoke with his neighbor, also Ed, about his faith in God.

But unless you'd enjoyed his homemade mid-century American classics - pot roast, scalloped potatoes, green bean casserole - you'd wouldn't imagine the pies. Not until you heard from his best friend Stanley that when the two of them disappeared into the Canadian wilderness to fish, they'd subsist in part on a pie that Ed would always bake.

Nobody imagined that Ed would pass suddenly on October 25, 2023, leaving behind his wife Barbara, stepdaughters Christy Scott Hill of Wilmington, NC and Amy Scott Platten of Boulder, Colorado, and a son Edward Jackson (with former wife Shirley Jackson), with whom he'd lost touch, and also a sister, Elizabeth Vitarius Lewis V of Wilmington, NC. He leaves 5 step-grandchildren -- Hailey, Emily, Hope, Alex, and Hannah -- as well as five more by marriage -- Abby, Sellers, Paul, Harry, and Julian. He was preceded in death by his parents, 6 brothers, and one sister.

Ed asked that his family scatter his ashes along the North Platt River in Colorado. His neighbors are planning a small memorial. Donations should go to the New Hanover Humane Society.

Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.CobleGreenlawn.com for the Vitarius family.