Mr. James W. Edwards

October 5, 1942 - December 28, 2019

Edwards, James William “Jim”, age 77, of Waterford, passed away at home unexpectedly on Saturday, December 28, 2019. Jim was born in Burlington on October 5, 1942 to Catherine Julie (nee. Fischer) and Floyd William Edwards. He spent his early years living in Waterford, attending elementary school at St. Thomas Aquinas and graduating from Waterford Union High School. Jim was a proud alumnus of the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater where he graduated with honors with a Bachelor of Science degree in History and Economics. At UW-W he was a member of Phi Sigma Epsilon fraternity. He began a lifelong career in education at Mukwonago High School where he taught social sciences and assisted with coaching wrestling. In 1970 he began teaching at Waterford Union High School where he taught for 32 of his 35-year teaching career. During his years at WUHS he created the Economics program in addition to teaching World History and Wisconsin History. As the only teacher of Wisconsin History and Economics at WUHS, thousands of students passed through his classroom over the years. Jim also spent many years involved with various sports programs at WUHS, including assistant coaching of wrestling, baseball, track, cross country, and football. He was a scorekeeper for boys and girls basketball games. He took great pride in teaching/coaching for the Junior Achievement of Wisconsin program that Advanced Economics students participated in, along with gracious assistance from local businesses. As a retired educator, Jim often met former students out in the community where he eagerly engaged in conversations and reminiscing. Jim was an avid hunter and enjoyed time spent deer hunting with his sons in central WI. His grandsons, Dane and Travis, brought him particular joy and in his retirement years he looked forward to spending time at their lake house where the boys enjoyed fishing, target practice shooting, and especially enjoyed driving around in Grandma’s golf cart. Jim’s favorite sports teams included the Wisconsin Badgers and the Green Bay Packers. Some of his hobbies included being active in the outdoors through gardening and tree planting, and reading non-fiction books. During wintertime, Jim enjoyed driving to and vacationing in Gulf Shores, AL with his wife. Jim is survived by his wife, Barbara (nee. Malmquist), with whom he was united in marriage on November 9, 1968 at St. Thomas Aquinas Catholic Church; three children, Brian (Lyn) Edwards of Waterford, Eric Edwards of Germantown, and Michelle (Michael) Dubis of Cross Plains, WI; and four grandchildren, Dane and Travis Edwards, and Sally and Wesley Dubis. He is further survived by sisters-in-law, Elaine Edwards and Debbie Malmquist; brothers-in-law, James Malmquist, Leslie “Les” Malmquist, and Rudy Grube; as well as nieces and nephews, Carrie (Bart) Reuter, Cammy (Brad) Thordson, Corrie (Tim) Pie, Susie (Scott) Balcerowski, Sara (Justin) Foster, and Chris Gross. Jim was preceded in death by his parents Floyd and Catherine Edwards, siblings Ellen Edwards (toddler sister), Thomas Edwards (infant brother), Mary Walter, Patricia Raasch, William Edwards, and brothers-in-law Randy Walter, Keith Malmquist, and Richard Grube. Visitation will be held at St. Thomas Aquinas Catholic Church, 305 S. First Street, Waterford, WI 53185 on Friday January 3, 2020, from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. and again on Saturday morning, January 4th from 10 a.m. to 11 a.m. with Mass of Christian Burial beginning at 11:00 a.m. In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to Love, Inc. of Burlington or to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. Mealy Funeral Home 225 West Main Street Waterford, Wisconsin 53185 262-534-2233 www.mealyfuneralhome.com