Edward Everett Hippchen, Sr.
4/18/33 – 8/9/22

Ed passed away peacefully on the morning of August 9, 2022, at the grand old age of 89. He was predeceased by his wife Joan (on March 21, 2021), to whom he was married for 65 years. Born in Buffalo, NY, in 1933, Ed's mother passed away when he was only 5. His father moved Ed and his beloved older sister Gloria to Charleston, SC, where his father remarried, giving Ed a step-mother and step-siblings. Ed outlived them all.

Ed attended the Citadel in Charleston, then joined the Army during the Korean War. Although ready to be shipped overseas, his aptitude with electronics caught the eye of his superiors, and he was assigned stateside as a Staff Sergeant to train combat soldiers in the use of critical technology. After his military service, Ed and Joan married in 1956 and he started a career where his skill in electronics put him on the front-line of early computer technology as a trouble-shooter with the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).

From Charleston, the couple moved to Puerto Rico, then Sarasota, FL, then Memphis, TN (in 1970), where Ed continued his career with the FAA. His children have fond memories of a field trip to 'daddy's work,' where in a giant room with giant computers, a printer painstakingly printed out a grid of x's in the shape of an animal. Ed retired after 28 years with the FAA, but never stopped working.

Throughout his adult life as husband and father, he held other odd jobs, such as a TV repairman and developing land for campsites. One favorite story involved a hearse delivery and a casket with an unsecured lid. In Memphis, he used his entrepreneurial spirit to develop several businesses such as mobile home transport, used-car sales, and a very successful roofing company. His strong work ethic was admired by and instilled in all his children.

Ed and Joan raised four children, and were blessed with 8 grandchildren, who in turn blessed them with 9 great-grandchildren: Edward Hippchen Jr. (aka Skip), his wife Rande, their sons Jimmy (wife Kristin, daughter Amelia) and Steven; Ken Hippchen, his wife Janice and her son Jacob Neal; Cathi Johnson, her husband Paul, her daughters Ashley (1984-2001) and Erin Blythe; and Vicky Ham, her husband Mark, and their daughters Aubrey Doyle (husband Dustin, children Dawson, Lana, Clark, Della), Brittney Williams (husband Stephen, daughter Hadassah), Cayla Ham, and Danielle Quinn (husband Luke, children Liam, Nora, Leona).

In lieu of flowers, Ed wanted memorial gifts sent to True Life Church, pastored by son-in-law Mark Ham, as a response to the powerful love of God, and in joyful anticipation of Jesus welcoming him to Heaven with open arms (True Life Church, 9789 Highway 51 S., Atoka TN 38004). Ed's home-going service and burial will be held with full military honors at the West Tennessee Veteran's Cemetery in a private ceremony.