Edward J. Gonzales [1950-2014]; LMHA inspector volunteered to lead Scout troop

8/27/2014

Edward J. Gonzales, a housing authority inspector who volunteered to be leader of the Boy Scout troop sponsored by his union local, died Friday in his East Toledo home. He was 64.

He died from atherosclerotic disease but seemed in good health, and his death was unexpected, his wife, Vivian, said.

Mr. Gonzales retired in 2012 from the Lucas Metropolitan Housing Authority, where, as a housing inspector, he made sure privately owned buildings met codes for Section 8 subsidies to aid low-income tenants. Landlords prized his knowledge of what was required to pass muster.

“Eddie was always looked up to,” said Vickie Ludeman, a sister-in-law who was his supervisor at LMHA.

He was a former vice president of Local 2916, American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees. When the local sponsored an inner-city Boy Scout troop based in the Port Lawrence Homes, Mr. Gonzales recruited union members to help. He became scoutmaster.

“With scouting, we’re giving the boys something nobody can take away from them,” Mr. Gonzales told The Blade in 1992. He took the boys camping and on field trips.

“Most of these boys had never gone anywhere,” his wife said. “Cedar Point, basketball games — these are things other kids take for granted, so he loved to see their excitement.”

For his volunteerism, he received a JC Penney Golden Rule Award and the George Meany Award from the Boy Scouts.

Born June 12, 1950, to Ramona and Frank Gonzalez, he grew up in North Toledo and attended Woodward High. He received a 2004 outstanding alumnus award from Penta Career Center in Perrysburg Township, where he learned groundskeeping and maintenance.

Surviving are wife, Vivian, whom he married Feb. 6, 1971; daughters, Victoria Riddle and Maria Gonzales; son, Edward R.; sisters, Irene Hernandez, Helen Alonzo, Anna Florez, Herlinda Guttierez, Carmen Menchaca, Esther Gonzales, and Margaret Gonzales, and Ramona Barron; brothers, Manuel and Richard, and five grandchildren.

Visitation will be from 4-8 p.m. Thursday and 2-8 p.m. Friday in the Freck Funeral Home, Oregon, with a recitation of the Rosary at 7 p.m. Friday. Funeral services will be at 11 a.m. Saturday in Ss. Peter & Paul Church in Toledo, where he and his wife were married and their children were baptized.

The family suggests tributes to the Boy Scouts of America’s Erie Shores Council in Toledo.

Contact Mark Zaborney at: mzaborney@theblade.com or 419-724-6182.