Roland Kirby Edwards

1928 - 2007  (78 years)

• Name	Roland Kirby Edwards
  Born	27 Oct 1928	Saybrook, Connecticut, USA
  Gender	Male
  Died	24 Apr 2007	Boise, Idaho, USA
  Buried	Idaho State Veterans Cemetery, Boise, Ada County, Idaho, United States
  Person ID	I1393	Family Tree
  Last Modified	28 Nov 2021

  
  

  Father	Ernest Mack Edwards,   b. 7 May 1893, Essex, Connecticut, USA ,   d. 26 Jun 1973, Deep River, Connecticut, USA  (Age 80 years)
  Mother	Norma Laurel Woodbury,   b. 29 Jun 1902, Hartford, Connecticut, USA ,   d. 17 Dec 1964, Deep River, Connecticut, USA  (Age 62 years)
  Married	May 1928	Deep River, Connecticut, USA
  Family ID	F2636	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

  
  

  Family	Sachiko Matsuzuka,   b. 27 Jan 1929, Sapporo, Hokkaido, Nippon
  Married	8 Dec 1953	Sapporo, Hokkaido, Nippon
  Divorced	16 Sep 1968	Canyon County, Idaho, USA
  Children	1. Living   2. Living   3. Living   4. Living
  Last Modified	28 Nov 2021
  Family ID	F501	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

  
  

• Event Map		Born - 27 Oct 1928 - Saybrook, Connecticut, USA Married - 8 Dec 1953 - Sapporo, Hokkaido, Nippon Divorced - 16 Sep 1968 - Canyon County, Idaho, USA Died - 24 Apr 2007 - Boise, Idaho, USA Buried - - Idaho State Veterans Cemetery, Boise, Ada County, Idaho, United States  = Link to Google Earth
  Pin Legend	: Address       : Location       : City/Town       : County/Shire       : State/Province       : Country       : Not Set

  
  

• Headstones

  Roland Edwards Roland K Edwards SP2 US Army Korea Oct 27 1928 Apr 24 2007 The Hunter Home From The Hill RLS

  
  

  Census		1930 US Census Deep River, Connecticut
  		1940 US Census Saybrook, Connecticut

  
  

• Notes

  Roland 'Ed' Edwards passed away from natural causes at the VA Home in Boise on Tuesday morning April 24, 2007. Ed was born on Oct. 27, 1928 in Deep River, Conn. to Ernest Mack Edwards and Norma Laurel Woodbury. He was a direct descendent of the Puritans that settled in New England in the 1620´s. The home he grew up in was built in 1786. Ed attended Deep River Schools and also worked the family dairy farm often telling stories of the hard work involved in caring for the dairy herd and operating the horse drawn farm implements. He became expert at his 'teamster' duties with his horses. He also enjoyed the New England outdoors, and with his best friend 'Reggie', he became an accomplished canoeist, woodsman, and marksman. In Jan. of 1947 Ed joined the Army. His duty assignments brought him to Ft. Leavenworth, Kan., Ft. Lewis, Wash., The Alaskan wilderness, and ultimately northern Japan during the Korean War. While in Sapporo, Japan, Ed met and married Sachiko Matsuzuka on Dec. 10, 1953. (Four children were born out of this union however Ed and Sachiko divorced in 1967). Ed was discharged from the Army in 1955 after nine years of service and returned with his wife to Connecticut where he was employed as a machinist. In 1956, Ed was recruited to work for the Brownlee/Oxbow Dam projects so he decided to move, however he never made it all the way as he ran out of money and was stranded in Burley, Idaho. He found a job at a sheep ranch and when he had earned enough money, he moved his family to Payette County, Idaho where he worked for Ore-Ida foods in Ontario, Ore. He was involved in the organization of the 'Union' at Ore-Ida, and became a 'marked man' for his union activities, so he knew he had to move on. In 1962, he accepted a job offer at the Falen Fruit Ranch on Sunny Slope, Idaho as a machinist/mechanic. He moved his family to Sunny Slope and then to Marsing. He worked there briefly and then went to work at the Robison Fruit Ranch where he stayed for the next 11 years. During his time at Robison´s, he built custom fruit processing equipment that is still in use today. He then accepted a job at Carnation Foods in Caldwell as a machinist, welder and fabricator. He later switched to Simplot Foods and then to the Simplot Grandview site where he worked until his retirement. He was widely known for his ability to build anything made of metal, his numerous inventions, and for his uncanny ability to fix anything that was mechanical. Ed enjoyed the Owyhee Mountains and spent a great amount of time exploring and taking photographs while riding his ATV. He was a lifetime member of the (NRA) National Rifle Association, enjoyed all shooting sports, and was an outspoken patriot of gun ownership rights. His best memories were his time spent with his boys and his friendships he made from his time at the Robison Fruit Ranch and Simplot's in Grandview. Ed was an active member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints and his passion was genealogy work, name extractions, and attending the Boise Temple. Ed is survived by his four sons and their wives; Bill (Kim) of Kuna, Reggie (Christine) of Nampa, John (Debbie) of Kent, Wash., and Andy (Vickie) of Marsing, 14 grandchildren, and five great-grandchildren. Friends may visit with the family at a viewing Sunday evening April 29 from 6 to 8 p.m. or on Monday April 30 from 9 to 9:45 a.m. prior to the 10 a.m. service at the Alsip & Persons Funeral Chapel, 404 10th Ave South, in Nampa. Burial with military honors will follow at 1 p.m. at the Veterans Cemetery in Boise. The family wishes to give gracious thanks and appreciation to the staff of Alsip & Persons Funeral Chapel, and the Boise VA Home, for their compassionate and professional service given to our father. --Published by Idaho Statesman on Apr. 28, 2007.