Donald E. Edwards (June 15, 1937 – August 16, 2018) was an American military officer. He was most notable for his service as adjutant general of the State of Vermont from 1981 to 1997. The adjutant general is the senior uniformed officer in the state and responsible for the organization, training and equipping of nearly 4,000 members of the Vermont Army and Air National Guard. His position as Adjutant General also included appointment as Inspector General and Quartermaster General, and head of the State Military Department, including the Veterans Affairs office.
Between leaving active duty in 1971 and being appointed Adjutant General in 1981, Edwards was employed as a dealer in fine arts and antiques and an appraiser of real property, antiques and household effects.[6] He also served as a member of Grafton, Vermont’s School Board and Planning Commission as well as the Windham Regional Planning Commission. From 1975 to 1981 he was a Democratic member of the Vermont House of Representatives.[7]
In 1997 Edwards was defeated for reappointment as adjutant general, losing the legislature's election to Martha Rainville.[11] (In Vermont, the adjutant general is elected for a two-year term by a secret ballot of the Vermont General Assembly.)[12] Rainville became the first woman to ever be appointed as a state adjutant general.[13][14] Edwards retired from the military upon Rainville assuming the adjutant general's duties.
In retirement Edwards continued to comment on public affairs in magazine articles and other media.[18] He was a member of the National Veterans Steering Committee during John F. Kerry's 2004 presidential campaign.[19] Edwards resided in South Bristol, Maine and Ashburn, Virginia.[20][21]
Edwards died in South Bristol, Maine on August 16, 2018.[23] He was buried at Old Oak Cemetery in South Bristol.
Family
In 1960, Edwards married Mary Baldasaro; they divorced in June 1965.[24] Later that month, Edwards married Julie Ellen Schmid, a native of Iowa.[25] In 1982, Edwards married Elizabeth M. Deppman of Middlebury, Vermont.[26] They divorced in 1991.[27] In 1992, Edwards married Jennifer Suzanne Wool of Essex Junction, Vermont.[28] In 2008, he married Susan Marie Bean in Loudoun, Virginia.[29]
Edwards was the father of two sons, William E. and Edmund E. Edwards.[30] In addition to them, he was survived by his wife Sue, and his step-children Elijah, Josiah, Ariadne, and Nathaniel.[30]
References
^Vermont Birth Records, 1909-2008, entry for Donald Everett Edwards, accessed August 6, 2012
.jpg)
