When Ed was 4, the family moved to Carrot River, Sask., where his dad homesteaded. When his father retired from the farm, Ed and his sister Amanda moved their parents back to Rosthern, Sask. Ed followed his brother to Coaldale, Alta., where he met Mary. Ed drove truck until he became a farm equipment salesperson in Lethbridge, Alta., in 1965: travelling for work allowed him to visit family across the prairies. He worked for an auto dealership from 1980–87. In 1992, he followed his son’s family to B.C., where he walked 2–3 miles each day, meeting people. The year after Mary’s death, he was lonely until he met Helen. Her family enfolded him, and he found peace and a new audience for his practical jokes, including “stool samples” (miniature 3-legged wooden stools inside film canisters). Though very ill, Ed continued joking with nurses and doctors.
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