Monday, October 27, 2025
I was a manager at Southdale Library in 2009 and had the pleasure of getting to know Ed. He had a special work station right outside my office door. He was beautiful person, a ravenous reader with an inquisitive mind and a passion for history. But what I loved most about him was the twinkle in his eye and his heart, as he shared inspired retellings of Ole and Lena jokes.
A special memory was the day I had returned from leave, in St. Louis, MO, where I had said goodbye to my mother and held her funeral. I was incredibly sad, and as manager, I felt I couldn’t share my personal grief with my staff, so I was all alone in it. I greeted Ed, and in his friendly and gracious manner, he had an Ole and Lena joke for me. I listened with rapt attention and growing delight. You see, he was from a different era, when people commonly shared long, clean jokes for amusement. It’s a lost art. My mother’s generation. She too was a wonderful storyteller, and had a store of jokes, which she artfully shared. Suddenly I wasn’t alone. My mother’s spirit was reborn, echoed in the story from Ed, a generational peer. Ed was such a lovely, gentle man, and he must have known I needed a good joke to lift my spirits. And he did. God bless you, Ed.
Susan Glenn
CALL Minneapolis (612) 200-2777 or duluth (218) 208-0377
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