One of the tasks I was given before the Summer 2015 Death Race was to provide a name & email of a close and trusted friend. I asked one of my closest and oldest friends, Abe Stoker, to be my trusted person during the Death Race. Unbeknownst to me, Abe was contacted while I was in the Death Race and asked to provide my eulogy. Here is what Abe wrote.
Ed lived an amazing life even though it was rather short. Ed was a great friend; he was the kind of friend that stands by you when you need somebody to be there. He was never one to shy away from a challenge, or push himself to the next level. We spend an entire semester in college locked in a computer lab fantasizing about all the fun we could be having, but we kept our heads down and passed the class. Now the night after we took the final, we had a lot of college fun to catch up on, and Ed didn’t shy away. After college Ed kept on challenging himself, always looking for the next big adventure. He married AJ, I helped throw him out of plane for that one. He moved all over the country, had two beautiful daughters (well technically it was AJ), and started participating in adventure races.
We always joked about running, my famous line that I would only run if I was being chased. Well of course he found a race where you are chased, and I had to participate in another Edventure. Thanks for that Ed, the memory of paying someone to run after us, seeing you dressed up in a skin tight green leotard with a sunflower hat, and body blocking that person so you didn’t get caught was something I can’t ever erase from my memory. Especially the leotard.
I am sorry for you loss AJ, you always stood by him and had the beautiful smile when he went on to his next crazy adventure. Colette, Delia I want you both to know that your dad is an inspiration, and life is one giant Edventure. Go out and live it to its fullest, just like your dad.
I knew Ed would continue to push himself, and when he asked for help for something called “Death Race” I thought, maybe he has finally gone too far. But this is Ed; Ed has sought out challenges, and utterly crushed them. All while smiling. Ed, I love you brother. You really should have picked the “Near Death Race”.
I wish I could say more, but his loss is still too fresh in my memory, I haven’t quite been able to process it fully. Just remember Ed as he lived; insane, smiling, and never stopping. Until the next Edventure my friend….
by Abe Stoker