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Submitted: 9/22/24 • Approved: 9/24/24 • Last Updated: 9/27/24 • R276205-G276205-S3
Edwina A. Lynch
July 19, 1940 – March 25, 2024
Edwina “Eddie” Lynch, age 83, passed away on Monday, March 25, 2024, at Dougherty Hospice House in Sioux Falls, SD. She was born on July 19, 1940, to Alexandra and Edwin Jacobson.
It’s the simple things in life that matter most, and there was a sweet simplicity to Edwina.
Unconditionally loved for many reasons and by many people, perhaps among her most admired characteristics was to embrace everyone for who they were without judgement. She saw the good in all, exuding compassion and grace.
Edwina was both a warrior (figuratively) and an actual Warrior, graduating from Washington High in 1958. She was vice president of the art club and yet it was her close friendships that were most impactful for her. She cultivated these relationships starting at Bancroft Elementary, Whittier Junior High, and WHS. In adulthood, she adored her class reunions and the sisterhood of friends she created. Ice skating at Drake Springs, working as a car hop at the Cottage Drive-in, and selling popcorn at the STATE Theatre throughout high school led to many memories that she cherished throughout her life. While Edwina was not much of a traveler, she often told the story of how she and her brother John traveled with their dad, Jake, to Disneyland in the first year it opened.
When Edwina brought Jim home to meet her mother, Alexandra, for the first time after a date in 1958, her mom told her that he was the one she was going to marry. Though Edwina didn’t necessarily believe her mom at the time, it was destiny in 1959. The newlyweds served as foster parents and never forgot their firstborn child, Kevin, who died shortly after birth. They moved to rural Colton with their children Sheila, Pat, and Mike, where they started a tree nursery business. Brady and Joey were added to the family, and in 1985, they moved back to Sioux Falls into the home where Jim was raised.
She was a passionate thrift store shopper, and it made her day when a housecoat was found. She loved driving her silver Cadillac, listening to jazz, watching movies, enjoying a Coca-Cola, taco burger, and, of course, some chocolate.
Several years after Jim passed away, Edwina moved from her north-end home into an apartment near downtown, where she enjoyed watching the buzz of her city with windows to the ceiling. When it became more challenging for her to remain in her apartment, she moved to Edgewood Assisted Living, where she received excellent care from the passionate and big-hearted staff. She made many friends there and is grateful for the blessings they shared.
Edwina’s family and friends meant everything to her. She longed for family picnics, holidays, and get-togethers. She was a caring and devoted mother who treated her kids like royalty. Of course, she was highly regarded for preparing treats that so many craved, including scotcharoos, marble squares, chili, cheesy potatoes, fried egg sandwiches, lemon cake, and smashburgers—even before they were popularized.
While most well-intentioned people sending a greeting card defer to Hallmark to create a verse and illustrate the message, that wasn’t quite personalized enough for her; she always added her own perfect verbiage, artwork, and stickers.
Regular calls with her children, grandchildren, friends, and family were an essential part of her day.
When having a conversation, she always made you feel like the most important person to her. Regardless of how she was feeling, she never failed to ask about you and your family. She also had a witty yet dry sense of humor and would crack a joke when it was least expected.
Life won’t be the same without her, yet her legacy will live on within us. A while back, she was asked, “What is the greatest advice you could give someone?” Her response was, “Be friendly wherever you are, always be there to help, and remember that you’re in the right place at the right time.” Of course, her passing would never come at the right time; however, there is solace knowing that for her, heaven is most certainly the right place.
Grateful to have shared her life are her children, Patrick Lynch of Sioux Falls, SD, Michael (Brenda) Lynch of Sioux Falls, SD, Brady Lynch of Sioux Falls, SD, and Joey (Elle) Lynch of Omaha, NE; grandchildren Erin, Kelsey, Christopher, Hannah, Matthew, Paxton, Sophie and Gus; great-grandchildren Savannah, Kiersten, Brooklyn, Madilynn, Makenley, Brecken, Rylen, Elaine and Nekotah; brothers, Roger (Julie) King of Sioux Falls, SD, and Rollie (Caroline) King of Oklahoma City, OK; sister-in-law, Mary Jacobson.
She was preceded in death by her husband, James Lynch; son, Kevin Lynch; daughter, Sheila Whetzel; parents, Alexandra King and Edwin Jacobson; stepparents, Harold King and Margaret Jacobson; brother, John Jacobson; and twin brother, Gerald Jacobson.
Contributed on 9/22/24 by 9katz
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Record #: 276205