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| Edward Walter "Bud" Tipton, Jr. 1941-2024 |
Normally I wouldn't post an obituary on this blog but but this obituary written for my cousin is perhaps the best obituary I have ever read. I suspect his niece wrote it, writing is her profession. She has worked for several newspapers.
She has captured the essence of her Uncle Bud without being over fawning or too short.
I will be unable to attend Bud's funeral which is this Thursday. His is the second funeral I've been unable to attend because I am caring for Bill. I had considered taking Bill with me for the two and a half hour ride to Pennsylvania and checking in a hotel overnight. Bill wants to see Pennsylvania one more time. However, two reasons I am unable to take him this time is because of the weather forecast for snow, rain and sleet. I'm also unable to make contact with his sister to confirm if I can speak a few words about my friend and cousin Bud. I also wanted to speak at my brother John's funeral last year but was advised they wanted to keep the funeral short and no one but the pastor would speak. I had left a message on his sister's phone that I would like to speak but I haven't received a response from her. I've called five times. Of course she's probably busy with making the arrangements and dealing with other family members. And perhaps it's just as well that I don't take Bill on that long trip to Pennsylvania. Bill continues to get weaker every day. A trip that length would be hard on both of us. I believe Bud's funeral service will be live streamed. I'll watch that as I did his twin sister's funeral services a couple years ago. That was the first time I watched a live stream of a funeral service. What a wonderful service for those who cannot attend in person. But oh how I so wanted to attend his services. It just is not to be though.
Here is Bud's obituary:
Edward “Bud” Tipton Jr., 82, of Downingtown, passed away on Friday, January 12, 2024 at Accelerate Skilled Nursing and Rehabilitation, Exton.
Born in West Chester, Edward was the son of the late Edward W. and Mabel R. (Thompson) Tipton.
He served his country in the U.S. Army as a military policeman before joining Johnson Matthey in Malvern, Pa., in 1969, where he would go on to work as a cost estimator for 42 years and where he made many lifelong friends.
Edward was an avid outdoorsman who was happiest in nature. He greatly looked forward to a yearly fishing trip with friends in the wooded hills of his parents’ native North Carolina, always triumphantly returning with coolers that brimmed with fresh brook trout. His skill as a fisherman was unmatched and he delighted in quietly, patiently, passing his knowledge on to others.
The garden is yet another place Edward excelled, faithfully harvesting his (regionally) famed tomatoes and sweet corn each and every summer. He also grew an annual abundance of wildflowers which spilled over tidy borders in every shade of the rainbow. Edward’s green thumb was nowhere more apparent than his early autumn skin, an impossibly deep bronze that made his impossibly blue eyes twinkle and shine all the more.
At the end of a long day, Edward enjoyed nothing more than retiring to his garage to watch the sunset with a stiff drink, his pipe and one of the several yellow Labrador retrievers he cared for over the years.
Edward was as comfortable with solitude as he was in a crowd. He was authentic and kindhearted. Generous in every respect. A calming and steady presence, a travel partner, a patriarch. A genuinely good and decent man, who was beloved by all who knew him.
He will be, and already is, deeply missed.
He is survived by his sisters, Barbara Keehn and Janet Drozdowski, along with many nieces and nephews.
In addition to his parents, Edward was preceded in death by his twin sister Joan Tipton Salluzzo and his sister Linda Tipton.
A visitation will be held on Thursday, January 18, 2024 from 9:45-10:45 AM at James J. Terry Funeral Home, 736 E. Lancaster Ave., Downingtown, PA 19335. A funeral service will be held at 11 AM at the funeral home. Interment will follow at Union Hill Cemetery, Kennett Square.
