The Muz Family.
It was good to be talking with you on Friday, even though the purpose of the talk was very sad.
Since the email from your boys, we have thought and talked a lot about Ed. Lydia and I have been talking and laughing about many of the things that we thought were great about him. Thought I would pass some of them on to you.
Lydia thinks she remembers Ed courting you at Balfour Tech. I recall first seeing you and Ed at Fielding, in the North Battleford highway district. This was in the summer of 1959. He was in the Soils branch and I was in the construction branch. Imagine my surprise arriving for my first day of work in the Highways Design Branch in the spring of 1960, and seeing Ed running the LGP 30 computer. Occasionally he had to hit the side of the cover on the computer to get it started. This move was designed to better seat the vacuum tubes in the computer. (The move was always successful). Also, after watching the computer repair man fix our photo reader, Ed was able to fix it for us without calling the service folks. (Is it true that he has an LGP 30 computer among the other treasures in your garage?). My first car was a VW beetle, on the advice of Ed. It was a good suggestion.
I recall with some horror the move to your present home. Fred Waldie's truck came down off the curb a bit too fast, causing the piano to teetering over the edge of the truck box, with a couple of us in the back holding on and praying. Fortunately, a sway in the other direction, brought the piano back on board.
Working with Ed in the Computer Center, Systems Centre and SaskComp was a delight. I'm sure you put up with a lot of home work hours while Ed was exploring the latest glitch in the operating system.
There were also many many fun filled hours on both the softball diamond and the hockey rink.
In about 1967, when our Mike was new, Ed was helping me mark papers from an evening class we were giving at the university. Ed took great delight in seeing me attempt my first diaper change without Lydia around. It was not a successful event, but we laughed a lot after the attempt.
I also clearly remember Ed calling us in Victoria to tell us he had a new heart and that he was standing in the middle of the room making the call.
I always thought I could outdo Ed with something new that I could show him that I had acquired at a garage sale. However, I was in the presence of a Master collector, and I always came in a distant second.
Ed was one of the good guys and we will miss him a lot.
Our love to you and your family.
Lydia and Tom
I have known Ed since 1979. I still recall vividly the first time we met during my interview at SaskComp. Ed assisted the interview. He was very warm and kept me at ease during the entire interview. He looked beyond my limited knowledge of the computer technology and kept on asking questions to explore who I was rather than what I knew. Later on when we reminisced the event, he reminded me that he was hiring staff based on the person's character and ability, and not the knowledge that he or she may possess at the time. This is the rule that I have continued to follow.
On a lighter note, Ed is truly a collector. In a lot of way, his garage was very similar to his office when he was at SaskComp. The office was always full of papers and books and appeared to be cluttered. I was certain that he would have a difficult time passing the IBM's clean desk policy if he had continued to work. Nevertheless, it's amazing that he never failed to pull out, upon request, the right piece of paper instantaneously in the middle of a pile, no matter how obscure the item was. He continued to demonstrate this ability with his collections in his garage every time I visited him.
He was kind, generous, patient and fair. He was selfless in passing on his insight of human behaviour and life. I have learned to look beyond the surface of a person or an event before drawing conclusions.
Ed had been my teacher, my coach, my mentor and my friend. His warmth, humour, courage and his love of life has touched so many people and I am truly blessed with the privilege to have known him.
We'll miss him and he'll forever be in our hearts.
Charles, Judy & Family.
At every shoot in Dundurn, Winnipeg, or Ottawa we would stay in army quarters. Ed was asked to sleep in the far corner. In the morning he would awaken to shoes and jackets all around him. His snoring was more than his fellow shooters could stand. Ed was always well rested in the morning.
You have an extraordinary family and must be proud of every single one. I'm so lucky to have the chance to know you all. Take care. If anytime I can do anything, please call.
Pauline Relkey
REFLECTIONS ON THE LIFE OF EDWARD MUZ (by Howard Hanson, December 18, 2002) It was through our mutual participation in Lawn Bowling that I was privileged to be acquainted with Ed Muz. Countless times we've played together, and as many times have been on competing sides. On the Greens and in the Clubhouse we heard his stories. One of the crosses we mutually bore was being in the Pink House for the House League competitions of the Lawn Bowling Club. The performance of our House over the years has not been enviable. Perhaps that is why, for me as the House captain, it was like pulling teeth to find willing participants. Ed never refused me. He played and he cheered for the Pink House. It has been my experience that you can learn more, and more quickly, about a person's character by observing his performance in a sporting event-whether curling, or hockey, or golf, or lawn bowling, than any other way. On the Greens Ed earned my admiration and respect. He was a good loser. He was a good winner. He was a sportsman. He was a team player. And he was someone who confessed his sin. The Greek word for "sin" is hamartia, and it means "to miss the mark". All who bowl know the consequences of being short, or wide. What I admired most about Ed is that he was a happy person. What does it take to make someone happy? What does it take to make you happy? If you won a million dollars in a lottery, would that make you happy? If you were promoted to the position of CEO in your company, would that make you happy. If you won a gold medal in a sporting competition, would that make you happy? If you got a clean bill of health from your doctor, when you feared cancer, would that make you happy? The truth of the matter is that none of the above will make you happy. Happiness is not something that happens to you or comes your way. Happiness is a choice that you make. Ed had reasons to be unhappy. His health problems would have been sufficient reason for many to choose unhappiness and to be bitter and despondent. But whatever setbacks he incurred, Ed chose to be happy. Somewhere in his journey through life Ed learned a secret known to the great Christian leader, St. Paul. Paul wrote these words from a prison cell in Rome, where he was on death row, not knowing what the future might hold. He tells his friends in Philippi, who are concerned about his welfare, that all is well with him: "For I have learned to be content with whatever I have. I know what it is to have little, and I know what it is to have plenty. In any and all circumstances I have learned the secret of being well-fed and of going hungry, of having plenty and of being in need." (Philippians 4:ll-12) Like Paul, Ed Muz knew the secret of being content, of being happy, in any and all circumstances. Ed Muz was not a religious man, in the sense that he was a frequent churchgoer. But if I were looking for someone who embodied the answer to this prayer of St. Francis of Assisi, I do not think I would be short of the mark to name Ed Muz as that person: Lord, make me an instrument of Thy peace; Where there is hatred, let me sow love; Where there is injury, pardon; Where there is doubt, faith; Where there is despair, hope; Where there is darkness, light; and where there is sadness, joy. O Divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled as to console; to be understood as to under- stand; to be loved as to love; for it is in giving that we receive, it is in pardoning that we are pardoned, and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life. Prayer of Thanksgiving God of life and goodness, again we thank you for the life of your servant, our friend, brother, father, grandfather, Ed Muz. We thank you for the memories of caring and commitment which his life has left us; for gifts you gave to so many through him; for gifts we were privileged to share with him in return. Remind us now that, as he was not lost to you when you shared his life with us, so now he is not lost to us as his life continues in your nearer presence and care. We confess our reluctance to let go. We commit him to Your keeping, knowing that only with you is there rest and peace, and that our life's work is complete. We pray for Ed's family and friends who must carry on their lives and work without him, and we commit them to your keeping, asking that whenever life distresses them, you will comfort and heal. Our God, free us now to learn from Ed Muz's example, to follow the way of faithfulness, and patience, and love which he has shown us, to build on the foundations he has given-- and draw us closer together in your love. Give us the unshakeable knowledge that there is nothing in all creation that can separate us from your love shown to us in Jesus our Lord. Help us to continue supporting one another, and give us your wisdom to face all that is ahead, and the courage to live out your love in a new and changed world. And may we know your grace, mercy and peace in our lives tomorrow, just as surely as we know them now. In Jesus' name, who has taught us to pray, Our Father... Amen. Scriptures Read in the Memorial Service Ecclesiastes 3:1-15 Psalm 121 John 14:1-6,18-19,27
One of the funniest things I ever saw and heard was Ed at the stags the Centre would have for guys getting married. Somebody had old stag movies that were so corny and poorly done that no one watched them. The fun part was when Chuck Keopke and Ken Hack attended. For those of you who may not know, Chuck and Ken are blind programmers. They would sit on either side of Ed and get him to tell them what was going on in the film. We all gathered around to listen to Ed. Ed would say things like, "And then he would -- Oh my goodness -- and she would -- Oh no, you should see -- Oh my! You'll never believe what happened next, etc." Chuck and Ken would be saying, "Ed, Ed, what's going on now?" It was hilarious. Ed would make up things which were much better than the movie.
This is an example of Ed's inventive genius and his uncanny ability to perpetrate practical jokes on friends and family. This goose call was demonstrated by Arnie during the eulogy. It was filled with corn starch that blew all over his face when it was operated. Revised: December 12, 2004