Mr. Edward Healy, 89, passed away at his home in Miramar Beach, Fla., on Sunday, Jan. 7, 2024.
Edward began his long and storied life on July 25, 1934, in Warner, born to Ernest Linwood Healy and Bernice Carneal Healy. Many of Edward’s stories of growing up are about how hard farm work was. Living in a home with no running water, one of Edward’s chores was to walk deep into the woods to the spring to haul the family’s drinking water. Edward became known for his constant mischief, often teetering over into outright trouble. He was able to avoid some trouble at school by having his sister Evelyn forge their mother’s signature on bad report cards until the gig was up. He was unable to avoid the horse that kicked him in the head after he hit the horse with a stick; Edward’s eyelid was stitched back together on the kitchen table, without any anesthetic.
Only because his father would not give permission sooner, Edward left the farm the day after his 18th birthday to join the Navy. His mother told him that she expected to see him back soon; she was sure that the Navy would not keep anyone as ornery as him. Edward proved his mother wrong, serving almost 30 years in the Navy as a corpsman and hospital administrator, and proudly retiring as a master chief. The Navy was a curious choice for a man who hated the water and never learned to swim; he figured out how to work the system, and managed to spend only six months at sea during his Navy career. Edward spent a year in Vietnam with the Marines during the war there, receiving a Purple Heart and other commendations for his service.
