Edwin Frederick Wilde Jr., 92, died on July 7, 2023 from complications due to Parkinson’s disease. He was born January 14, 1931 in Elmhurst, Illinois to Edwin F. Wilde Sr. and Carrie Bell (Hammond) Wilde.

A first generation college graduate, Ed graduated with a PhD in mathematics from Illinois State University in Normal, Illinois in 1955, where he met his wife Connie Mae (Rawlings) Wilde. Together they celebrated almost 50 years of marriage until her untimely death in 2001. “Dr. Wilde” was a beloved and esteemed math professor and administrator in four different collegian settings: Beloit College (Wisconsin); Roger Williams College (Rhode Island); University of Tampa (Florida); and University of South Carolina Upstate (South Carolina). He always treated his students and fellow faculty members with respect and always endeavored to instill a love of learning both in his work and at home.

Ed loved the outdoors and was an avid hunter, fisher, hiker, gardener, and beekeeper. He was a life-long athlete as a state champion wrestler, regular jogger, and even competed and won events in the SC Track and Field Octogenarian Olympics. Throughout his life, he was a die-hard fan of the Chicago White Sox, and really enjoyed watching their winning season last year. He was a member of Rotary and the Men’s Gardening Club, helped build houses with Habitat for Humanity, and was a founding member of the Unitarian Universalist Church in Spartanburg, SC. In quieter moments, you could find him diligently working through the daily crossword and sudoku puzzles, or figuring out how to solve a Rubik’s cube or some other mathematical challenge. He met and married Kathleen Marie (Wright) Wilde on an elder hostel trip hiking, biking, and kayaking, and they enjoyed 15 years of marriage until her passing in 2019.

In addition to his parents and wives, Ed was predeceased by his sister, Sally and son, Brad. He is survived by his brother, Carroll and wife Roxy (Carmel, CA); his son Bruce and wife Karen (Mechanicsville, MD); his daughter Elizabeth and husband Michael (Crossville, TN); seven grandchildren Sarah, Kayla, Trevor, Matthew, Thomas, Anna, and Jackson; and four great grandchildren Parker, Preston, D’asia, and Deon. He also had a bevy of beautiful caregivers in South Carolina (Sophie), New York (Lynda, Marlene, Caroline, Barnaby, and Talisha), and Tennessee (Marie, Lorie, Hannah, Christie, Carol, Holly, Bea, Stefanye, and Vicki) who were kind and caring for him in good days and bad. He will be remembered as a kind, loving, and generous man by all who knew him.

A funeral will be held at Shepherd of the Hills Lutheran Church in Crossville, TN in early August and a service of remembrance will be held at the Unitarian Universalist Church in Spartanburg, South Carolina on a yet to be determined date. A private interment will follow later at the Turtle Creek Cemetery in Shopiere, Wisconsin. In lieu of flowers, the family requests gifts to be made to Parkinson’s Research at https://apdaparkinson.org/.