Obituary of Edwin Lars Larsen

EDWIN LARS LARSEN Latham- Edwin passed away suddenly April 27, 2018 due to a pulmonary embolism. He was the beloved husband of Alison Smith Larsen; devoted father to Edwin Raymond and Olivia Grace; loving son of Mercedes and the late Edwin Larsen; fearless brother to Karen and Petra Larsen; son-in-law to Raymond and Margaret Smith; brother-in-law to Brandon Bullock, Sarah Smith Allen (Jay), Ibby Smith, and Melissa Norris (Matthew); fun-loving Uncle Ed to Brooks and Cooper Allen; and the alpha to Ollie. He will be missed by his cousins, extended family, friends, and colleagues. Ed was blessed to grow up in Garden City, Long Island, NY. A proud Trojan, he was a 1989 graduate of Garden City Senior High School. The friends he grew up with were like brothers to him till the very end. Distance and daily demands of life never altered those bonds. A natural born athlete, Ed lettered five times, playing defense on the soccer and lacrosse teams. He was a part of the 1990 National Junior College Lacrosse Championship team, the Nassau Lions. He went on to play lacrosse as a Great Dane at the University at Albany, graduating with a BA in 1994. Ed formed many lifelong friendships while attending the University of Albany. Ed relished the Danes recent success and attended many football and lacrosse games at Bob Ford Field with his family (Fire It Up!). Ed had the wonderful opportunity to reunite with his former college team mates, the "Gray Danes," to play an alumni lacrosse tournament last year in Lake Placid. He loved sports so much he even enjoyed refereeing local youth sports games in his spare time. Ed held several security licenses and worked in the financial services industry before relocating to Albany after 9/11 to make a fresh start; paving a path to a new career. Ed was a natural salesman and felt a passion that only grew. Ed worked hard to achieve success in his business, Nordic Enterprises, and was excited about his current sales position with Innerface Architectural Signage, Inc. Ed would want to thank all of those friends and colleagues that helped him to excel in sales. While Ed worked hard; he played even harder. He lived every day to the fullest and taught those around him not to sweat the small stuff. He was known for saying "Just go for it; what's the worst that can happen?" Ed learned to swim at a young age, competitively swimming through his youth thanks to the encouragement of his mother. For many years, he was a lifeguard for the Town of Hempstead beaches and while in school at U-Albany. Swimming was a lifelong passion for Ed, and he swam whenever he could, always managing to find a YMCA when on the road for business. Ed loved the ocean, a ripping wave, and traveled the world to surf. Catching waves in Hawaii, Peru, Costa Rica and Puerto Rico were just some of the locations checked off Ed's bucket list. He traveled with his board strapped to the hood of his car while making sales calls; riding the waves whenever he could. Ed was at the vortex of that wave of life. He was happy and content, finding success at both work and home, adjusting his position on the board throughout, tethered firmly by the bounds of love for his wife, children, family and friends. Ed shared his lust for life and his love of many sports with his children. He was always on the go, recently teaching them both to snowboard. Ed was a horse racing fan and met his wife on Kentucky Derby Day 2008. He and his family attended Opening Day at Saratoga Springs Race Track annually; never missing one since 2009. His family and friendships were everything to Ed. He laughed easily and often. He had an infectious laugh that will be painfully missed by all that knew him. "Skol!" to a life well lived, Ed. Relatives and friends are invited to call Thursday May 3 from 4:00 - 7:00 pm at the Dufresne & Cavanaugh Funeral Home, 149 Old Loudon Road, Latham. Funeral services will be celebrated on Friday May 4, 2018 at 10: 30 a.m. in Good Shepherd Lutheran Church, 547 Saratoga Road, Glenville with Pastor Deron Milleville officiating. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made in Ed's memory to the Larsen Children's Fund, CAPCOM Federal Credit Union at a local branch or mail to: The Larsen Children's Fund c/o CAPCOM Federal Credit Union, 4 Winners Circle, Albany, NY 12205 For directions, information or to light a memory candle for the family please visit www.dufresneandcavanaugh.com.