Mr. Edward F. Upchurch

Edward Franklin Upchurch passed away at home on June 13, 2023 at the age of 96, leaving behind a large blended family. He was predeceased by his wife of 44 1/2 years, Sheila C. Upchurch. Ed was born in Raleigh, North Carolina on February 9, 1927. He was the son of the late Melzar Jackson Upchurch of Wake County, North Carolina and Agnes (Brett) Upchurch of Ahoskie, North Carolina. He had one sister, Judith Upchurch McGhee. He grew up in North Carolina. Ed graduated from the United States Merchant Marine Academy on December 10, 1947. After serving in the Merchant Marine, he attended the North Carolina State College of Agriculture and Engineering of the University of North Carolina (now called North Carolina State University) thanks to the financial support of his wife Patricia, who worked to support the couple while he was in college. He graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering on June 10, 1951. The following day, he enlisted in the U.S. Navy, from which he received an honorable discharge on May 27, 1953. Upon leaving the Navy, Ed worked as an engineer for Standard Oil (Esso, Exxon) in Florham Park, NJ. Along the way, he earned a Master of Science in Chemical Engineering from the Stevens Institute of Technology. After he retired from Exxon he continued to work as an engineer at Foxboro Corporation in Foxboro, MA. Ed married Patricia ONeill on June 18, 1949. They had four children: Michael Vincent, Margaret Brett (Meg), Mary Kathryn (Katy), and Melissa Garrett. The family lived primarily in New Jersey, but Eds work assignments also had them living for various lengths of time in London. the county of Hampshire in England, and The Hague in The Netherlands. After divorcing Patricia in 1973, Ed married Sheila (Cross) Smith on October 18, 1975. The marriage brought her three children, Peter Gregory, Gretchen Maria, and Melissa Ann, into the family. Ed and Sheila lived in New Jersey for a few years following their marriage, then moved to Rhode Island in 1983, drawn by Eds passion for recreational sailing. Ed was delighted by all of his grandchildren and great-grandchildren, whether they were his by blood or through his marriage to Sheila. At the time of his passing, he had fifteen grandchildren, three great-grandchildren, and a fourth great-grandchild due in October 2023. Ed was always a tinkerer. He and a childhood friend enjoyed assembling homemade radios, and he later enjoyed providing his own children with erector sets, Legos, and other toys that encouraged mechanical creativity. He was a woodworker who built furniture for his households. He built a beautiful wooden cradle that has been the bed of each one of his newborn grandchildren and great-grandchildren. Professionally, he earned a patent in 1973 while working at Exxon. He passed on his love of scientific research to his daughter Meg and his skill at woodworking and home maintenance to his daughter Katy. Although he was not a musician himself, Ed had a great love of music that he passed on to all four of his children. He appreciated many kinds of vocal pieces, ranging from hymns to opera to classic jazz artists like Billie Holiday, Louis Armstrong, and Ella Fitzgerald. His favorite instrumental works included those by Beethoven and Mozart, as well as the music of the Preservation Hall Jazz Band. Listening to music was a source of joy to him throughout his life, especially as he aged and became less capable of pursuing his many other interests. Ed was also a great reader and his love of books inspired several of his children and grandchildren to become avid readers themselves. He got considerable satisfaction out of knowing that other members of the family shared his fondness for reading. We are grateful to the people from hospice who read to him and allowed him to continue enjoying books after his vision failed. After his initial exposure to sailing in New Jersey during the 1960s, Ed developed an enduring passion for the sport and he involved many family members in it. He and Sheila took annual sails from Rhode Island to Maine and more frequent sails around Narragansett Bay. Ed went with other crew members, including sons-in-law Gerhard Fickenwirth and Scott Pattie, or served as a crew member himself on voyages to Bermuda, Nova Scotia, and across the Atlantic from Bristol, RI to Galway, Ireland. He volunteered with the Coast Guard Auxiliary and taught sailing lessons for them. Other volunteer work included tutoring in math and in English as a second language. Ed was a great traveler. His journeys for work or for pleasure took him to many destinations in Europe, Asia, South America, Australia, Africa, and North America. He continued building his bucket list of travel plans up to the end of his life. Most of all, he wanted to be an astronaut and travel to Mars. Ed is predeceased by his parents, his sister Judy McGhee, his first wife Patricia, his second wife Sheila, his daughter Melissa Mayernik, and step-grandson-in-law Tim Felice. He is survived by his son Michael of Seattle, WA, his daughter Meg of Lexington, KY, his daughter Katy Fickenwirth and son-in-law Gerhard of Beverly, MA; their children Laura Dyas, Paul Fickenwirth, and Peter Fickenwirth; Lauras husband Sam and their daughter Sybil Victoria; Pauls wife Emily and their daughter Madilyn Jo; son-in-law Thomas Mayernik, Tom and Melissas daughter Emily Burns and her husband Morgan. Ed is also survived by his step-children Peter Smith and wife Annemarie of West Newbury, MA, their children Alexander and his wife Lindsey, Mandy and her husband Sal and their son Anthony, Molly, and Belle; Gretchen Coviello and her husband Nino of Madison, NJ and their children Meredith and her fianc Ryan Marchese, Jessica and her fianc Matthew Spero, Michael and his wife Paige, and Nicholas; Melissa Pattie of Providence, RI, Scott Pattie of Bristol, RI, and their children Abigail and her fianc Sohail Syed, Eric and his fiance Karolyn Sundberg, and Emma and her boyfriend John Alburger. A celebration of Ed's life will be held on Friday, June 23, 2023 at 12:00 noon at Living Faith United Methodist Church, 2 Dane Street, Beverly, MA. 01915. Relatives and friends are invited to attend a Graveside Service with Military Honors Saturday, June 24, 2023 at 11:00 AM in The Cremation Garden at North Burial Ground, 1081 Hope Street, Bristol, RI 02809. In lieu of flowers, donations in Eds memory may be made to the Metropolitan Opera at Metropolitan Opera | Support Extraordinary Opera (metopera.org). Ed was a loving husband, father, grandfather, and great-grandfather. He was a man of varied interests who connected with his family members in many different ways. We will miss him! Our special thanks to Connie Travassos, Luisa Pereira, and the other caregivers who took such excellent care of Dad and made sure he had a long and dignified life when he became unable to care for himself. Services Relatives and friends are invited to attend a celebration of life Friday June 23, 2023 12:00 PM to TBD Living Faith United Methodist Church 2 Dane Street Beverly, MA 01915 Relatives and friends are invited to attend a graveside service Saturday June 24, 2023 11:00 AM The Cremation Garden at North Burial Ground 1081 Hope Street (Route 114) Bristol, RI 02809 Burial with Military Honors Saturday June 24, 2023 11:00 AM The Cremation Garden at North Burial Ground 1081 Hope Street (Route 114) Bristol, RI 02809