Edward Frank Karolak

Edward Frank Karolak
December 13, 2022
Durham, North Carolina - Edward Frank Karolak, 93, passed away peacefully in his sleep on December 13, 2022, after suffering a long illness. His wife, Linda, was at his side, in their apartment at Croasdaile Village.
He was born in Pennsylvania to parents Leon Karolak and Antonina Rutkowski. He is predeceased by his siblings Eva, Henry, Marion, Stella, and Joseph.
Ed grew up in Ambridge, PA, where he graduated from Ambridge High School, earned a BA in Education from Edinboro State Teacher's College, and an MA in Education from Penn State. He began his teaching career in PA, then moved to Kirtland, Ohio, where he taught Chemistry and Earth Sciences at Kirtland High School, and at Shaker Heights High School in addition to teaching Chemistry to nursing students at Lakeland Community College in Mentor, OH. He loved teaching, and was fulfilled by this 30 year career, often keeping contact with his former students, as they stayed in their small community, or spread their wings to other states.
Ed and Linda married on July 14, 1979, and moved to their new adopted home in Durham, NC in 1985, when Ed took early retirement from Ohio Public Schools, and he followed his wife as she continued her career in biochemistry research at Duke University. They promptly enjoyed all the advantages of living in this beautiful state and community, with all of the cultural opportunities that an academic community provides. Ed was an avid patron of the arts, enjoying classical and jazz music, visiting museums, and hiking in the NC mountains, as well as soaking up rays on the glorious NC beaches.
Ed was a member of the congregation at Duke University Chapel, enjoying worship and activities, including volunteering in leadership roles in the Local Missions and Outreach Committee, providing and serving food at the Urban Ministries shelter, delivering meals for Meals on Wheels, working with Montagnard refugee resettlement, being a leader and follower in a weekly prayer ministry.
Ed served his country in the US Army, attaining the rank of Lieutenant Colonel, as he served in the Signal Corps as a cryptographic officer during the Korean Conflict.
Ed was a generous and kind man, and he will be greatly missed by his loving wife, his friends and neighbors, and three nephews and their families (great nieces and nephews) in PA. and MASS. He had a life well lived. Linda and Ed would like to extend a special thanks to the loving care provided by the Durham VA Medical Center and Croasdaile Pavilion.
The family is being assisted by Clements Funeral Service in Durham. Online condolences can be made at www.clementsfuneralservice.com.