EDWARDS Eldon

EDWARDS

ELDON RUSSELL EDWARDS, of Lethbridge, passed away peacefully at Edith Cavell Care Centre on January 10th, 2016 at the age of 93. Eldon was born on May 16th, 1922 in Taber Alberta to Charles and Sally Edwards. After graduating high school in Taber, Eldon joined the RCAF and trained as a pilot. He spent most of his time during the war flying for the Navigation School in Portage La Prairie, Manitoba. Throughout his life, he enjoyed telling his children and grandchildren about his adventures in the Air Forces. Eldon married Mary Gibb of Magrath, Alberta on September 11, 1946 in the Cardston Alberta temple. They resided in Edmonton while Eldon finished his degree in Agriculture at the University of Alberta and then moved to Coaldale in 1949 where he worked as a fieldman for the Canadian Sugar Company. The family moved to Lethbridge in 1963, and in 1967 Eldon joined the Alberta Government in the department of Energy & Natural Resources -Public Lands where he managed the government operated grazing reserves in Southern Alberta. In 1981, Eldon was promoted to Director of Program Support in the Public Lands Division and relocated to Edmonton. He retired and moved back to Lethbridge in 1987. Eldon was a dedicated member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and enjoyed his many callings in the church. Both Eldon and Mary served a mission in the Atlanta Georgia Temple in 1988-89. Eldon and Mary loved their family and spent much of their retirement traveling Canada and the United States visiting family and attending important events in their children’s and grandchildren’s lives. I can’t think of many baptisms, graduations or weddings they missed. Eldon was predeceased by his wife Mary Gibb Edwards, parents Charles and Sally Edwards, and sisters Rachel Anderson, Maydell Anderson and Ruth Nadine Edwards. He is survived by his sister Donna Valgardson, his children Sally (Steven) Bird of Plainview Texas, Russell (Rhonda) Edwards of Lethbridge, Sylvia (Gary) Nakamura of Calgary, Michele (Blair) Nielsen of Mesa Arizona, 16 grandchildren and 36 great grandchildren. Friends may meet the family on Friday, January 15, 2016 from 7:00 to 8:00 p.m. at the LDS – Lethbridge Stake Centre. The Funeral Service will be held on Saturday, January 16, 2016 at 10:00 a.m. at The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, LETHBRIDGE STAKE CENTRE, 2410-28 Street South, Lethbridge.