Edward B. Brandt, age 73, died unexpectedly on Tuesday, June 27, 2017 of natural causes in Denali National Park. His life was well-lived, full of love, health, and vitality. He and his wife, Cindy, were in Alaska to celebrate 50 years of happy marriage, which they did on Sunday.
Ed was born to Jack and Gertrude Brandt in Philadelphia, PA and received his MBA in economics from Temple University. After moving to Chevy Chase, MD in 1969, he worked as an economist at the Environmental Protection Agency. One of his proudest achievements was his successful work on Lyme Disease prevention and outreach. After retirement in 2012, Ed and Cindy moved full-time to The Villages, Florida where he happily filled his days with bicycling, table tennis, and the fitness center.
After Cindy, Ed’s greatest passion in life was bicycling, especially tandem. In 1989, he took a Boy Scout Troop, including his son, on a nearly 3,000 mile bicycle tour across the country. He was a co-founder of Bikes USA (formerly The Bicycle Exchange) and served as president of both Potomac Pedalers in the DC area and Sumter Landing Bike Club in Florida.
Ed is survived by his wife, Cindy; his children, Jason and Sadie; his brothers, Phil and Bob; his grandchildren, nephews, and many, many close friends and relatives.
There will be a memorial service on July 17th at 4 p.m. at the Sea Breeze Recreation Center at Odell and Buena Vista Boulevard. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made in Ed’s name to the National Park Foundation which supports the National Parks he loved so much. The family has requested friends of Ed to email any memories as they will be compiling a book of them.
