Edward Earl

Edward Earl
Edward Earl, 51, of Redmond, WA, died tragically in the Jago River in Alaska on June 19, 2015. Edward was a mathematics genius, a violin player, a relentless traveler to the mountains of the world, and a kind and gentle soul who will be missed by all.
Edward was born in New York City in 1964, the son of scientists. His family soon moved to Spartanburg, South Carolina, where he excelled in Math and Chemistry at school, played violin in the High School and regional orchestras, and went backpacking in the hills of North Carolina-these were common themes throughout his life.
Edward attended Furman University in Greenville, SC, where he earned a B.A. in Chemistry. Later, at the University of Utah, he earned a PhD in Chemistry, with an emphasis in Computational Chemistry. In graduate school and after, he wrote software to predict the shapes of molecules to assist pharmaceutical research. Edward was able to think at a level of abstraction beyond most of us.
Edward was a relentless highpointer. He climbed the highest mountains or hills in many of the states and counties of the western US, and globally, he climbed Mt. McKinley in Alaska, Aconcagua in South America, and Mount Meru in Tanzania, among thousands of others. He travelled for weeks at a time around western North America in his dusty blue pickup truck to meet friends at trailheads, camp, and hike to the summit of a nearby peak the next morning. Unstoppable, Edward would get back in his pickup and continue on to the next trailhead, and repeat the process-sometimes bagging two or three peaks in one day. He was known on these trips for his diet of Pop Tarts, Ramen, and mac & cheese; his non-stop choice of blue jeans (even on snowy summits of the Pacific NW) and his general frugality.
Edward's violin musicianship was an important part of his life. He played most recently with the Kirkland Civic Orchestra (Kirkland, WA) , before that with the La Jolla Symphony Orchestra (San Diego, CA), and the University of Utah Campus Symphony. While Edward was sometimes emotionally muted in person, his expressiveness came to the fore when he played the violin.
Edward was a brilliant mathematician, but he had no hubris about it. He was always happy to take time to explain to anyone curious, some aspect of geometry, geography, astronomy, the physical sciences, or math.
Most importantly, Edward was a kind and loving soul. His patience, childlike manner, unflappable calmness, and simple desires will be missed by all.
Edward was preceded in death by his mother, Josephine R. L. Earl. He is survived by his father, Charles R. Earl; brother, James Earl; and sister-in-law and nephews, Debra, Devin, and Justin Earl, all of Livingston, MT.
Memorial Services have been held at St. Andrews Episcopal Church in Livingston, MT at 10 am on August 15, 2015.