Dr. Edmon (Ed) Adams, 76

Dr. Edmon (Ed) Adams, 76, passed away in peace with his family and close friends on November 25, 2018, at Evergreen Nursing Home. Ed was born December 28, 1941 in Parris Island, South Carolina to Alma Damadio Adams and Orval Edmon Adams, a retired Marine.  Ed was very proud of the fact that he was born in a military hospital and of his father’s Marine career.  The Adams family moved to Aurora, Colorado when his father Orval retired in the mid 1950’s.

Ed graduated from Aurora Central High School in 1960. He lived two blocks away from his high school, but he still insisted that he had to drive to school in his 1938 Plymouth convertible. Ed and his brother, Arthur Vaughn Adams, attended Metro State College, and were the first two students to walk across the stage at Metro’s first four-year graduation ceremony in 1969. Ed graduated from Metro with distinction honors. Ed continued his education at Denver University, earning both his Masters of Arts degree in 1971 and a Phd in Math in 1976.

Ed’s teaching career of mathematics began in 1975 with a one-year appointment at Southern Colorado College in Pueblo, now known as CSU-Pueblo.  In 1976, Ed continued his teaching career at the University of North Dakota. In 1989, Ed decided it was time to leave the land of flatness, the extreme cold and heat of North Dakota and return to the colorful mountains of Colorado to be close to family, good fishing and skiing.  Ed and family moved to Alamosa, Colorado, where he became the Department Chair of Math and Physics at Adams State University, until his retirement in 2005.  He was recognized by Adams State for his service on the new Porter Hall Building Committee. 

Ed met his future wife, Lucy Aaron, at her aunt and uncle’s home in Aurora, Colorado.  Ed and Lucy were married in Hillrose, Colorado, on October 19,1963, and just celebrated their 55th wedding anniversary. From 1963 until 1975, Ed and Lucy lived in east Denver.  While living in Denver, they spent many years backpacking in Colorado, fly fishing the Colorado streams,  cross-country skiing and exploring the countryside together, as both loved the out of doors. Ed and Lucy’s daughter Kari Adams Ricard was born in Grand Forks, North Dakota.  During his years in North Dakota, Ed became an avid hockey fan along with encouraging and supporting Kari with her many years of ice skating, gymnastics and hockey lessons.    

Ed had several hobbies and was very passionate about each one of them.  One was the making and drinking of craft beer that was made with two retired colleagues from Adams State. In 1991, Ed also started the Ballads and Bluegrass radio program that is still running on the local NPR station KRZA. He was always the gear head, belonging to a car club in his high school days, and drag racing on Western Nebraska and the Eastern Colorado tracks.  Later after he retired, he returned to racing, and one would find him on the oval racing tracks racing his red MGB at Vintage Classic car races.  In Ed’s free time, one could find him fly fishing, reading science fiction books or “trying” to learn how to play the banjo. Ed was also known for giving worldly advice to his daughter and grandchildren. 

Ed is survived by his wife, Lucy, his daughter Kari, grandchildren Gabe and Haylee Husmann and son-in law Jordan Ricard.

In lieu of flowers, the family has established a scholarship in Ed’s name that will be given to a student that is majoring in math or a field of science.  Donations may be sent to Rogers Family Mortuary, 205 State Street, Alamosa, Colorado 81101. Donations should be written in the name of Dr. Edmon Adams Scholarship. 

A Celebration of Life honoring Ed will be held December 8, 2018, starting at 11:00 a.m. at Society Hall, 400 Ross Ave. in Alamosa, Colorado.  Please wear a hockey jersey (if you have one) to the celebration, as this would be appropriate attire for the event. 

Rogers Family Mortuary of Alamosa is in care of the arrangements.  To leave online condolences, tributes and remarks for Ed’s family, please visit www.RogersFunerals.com