Edwin Sheffield

Ed Sheffield Remembrance We have been spoiled. After 98 years and two months Edwin Sheffield will no longer be sharing his quiet, reassuring example with us. He was born in 1922 into a long line of Rhode Islanders with two brothers and a sister all of whom predeceased him. He and his wife, Dorothy Yerger (Dottie), built a house in Middletown in 1960 which served as the setting for happy summer visits for decades afterwards. There, he reinvigorated his Rhode Island accent and rode to the beach in the 1956 VW bug which had been his first car. Dottie and Ed were due to celebrate their 70th anniversary in September. They were introduced by mutual friends when he moved to Philadelphia after serving in the Navy during the war. Throughout the years they worked together on numerous projects. Both enjoyed success together and individually at the Philadelphia Flower Show where they exhibited in various arrangement classes marrying his mechanical talent and their design sense. These projects allowed him to spend more time in his beloved woodworking shop from which he produced not only the flower show creations, but also fine furniture and mechanically intricate Halloween costumes. As well as his creative endeavors, Ed was on the Vestry of St. Paul’s Church where he served as Treasurer, a role he also held at Bird-in-Hand consignment shop in Chestnut Hill. After many years in management at Imperial Type Metal Company he turned his career in a new direction. Having been a board member of a local home for elderly women, in 1976 he became one of the founding board members of a new retirement community, Cathedral Village. In addition to being a founding member of the board, he served as Executive Vice President and Treasurer of the new facility until 1991 when he retired to start up a new business to help older clients with their bookkeeping. In recognition of his service, The Sheffield Room was named in his honor. In 2004 he and Dottie moved into Cathedral Village themselves, bringing him back to a place where he was loved and admired and where he addressed every staff member by name. He served on many committees and continued to serve as Secretary of the board until recently. He is survived by his two sons Win and David, daughter-in-law Carole, two grandchildren, Peter and Hope Sheffield and her husband Zef Marks and a great grandchild Dax Marks. They and his many other admirers will long miss the twinkle in his eye and the dimple in his cheek. May he rest in peace. In lieu of flowers please make donations to The Governors Academy of Byfield, Mass, and Williams College, class of ‘44 institutions to which he remained connected throughout his life.