District
8 players are mourning the loss of one of our leading and most popular players
with the death of Thomas Edward (Ed) Schultz of Chesterfield MO. Ed passed away on Friday
evening, January 30, ten days after his 60th birthday. He is survived by his
wife, Beth Fay; his mother, Mary Margaret Schultz;
brother Rick and sisters Mary and Margaret.
Originally from Beardstown IL, Ed graduated from the University of Illinois and played on the Fighting Illini football team. He worked as a real estate agent in Springfield IL before moving to St. Louis, where he and Beth worked together as mortgage brokers.
Ed was an avid fan of Fighting Illini sports and had been looking forward to a trip to Champaign for the Illinois vs. Iowa basketball game on February 1. He was especially proud of his collection of Illini posters and memorabilia, which filled his family room and memorialized his beloved Chief Illiniwek.
Ed also had a great fondness for animals, his rose garden, good books (one of his favorite authors was Ayn Rand) and the architecture of Frank Lloyd Wright. He was a long-time supporter and volunteer worker for the Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation, the Wright home at Taliesin (Wisconsin) and the Dana-Thomas House in Springfield IL.
After his friends and family, Ed's greatest love was the game of bridge. He was always ready to play anywhere, any time, and he earned numerous regional wins and overall places in national events. He played often in local clubs and tournaments with partners of all skill levels. He ended his career with around 7300 masterpoints, just a few hundred shy of Emerald Life Master status. Although he never won the national championship he aspired to, the title surely would have come if he had more opportunities.
Ed endured many surgeries and treatment regimens during his illness, and through it all, he amazed everyone with his energy and upbeat attitude. In March 2007, four days after brain surgery, he played almost every day at the St. Louis NABC. A month before he died, he traveled to the Holiday Regional in Kansas City and won a four-session knockout teams. Two weeks later, he played in the St. Charles MO sectional with his favorite partner, Mark Kessler, and placed second in the knockout teams. At the sectional, he was honored as the St. Louis 2008 Player of the Year for winning the most masterpoints at Unit tournaments. (See the photo and story in the Greater St. Louis Bridge News page in this issue.)
Ed was a serious bridge competitor, but even in the highest level events, he always had fun at the table. All of Ed's partners have entertaining stories about his bridge exploits. Here's one, from a long-ago Chicago regional, that showcases Ed's skills in handling cards and people:
|
Contract:
Opening lead: |
|
|
|
Ed |
Me |
|
|
|
Our opponent
sitting South was an older lady who greeted us warmly when we came to
her table. On this deal, she was declarer in 4H and Ed, West, led the
4. I won the
K and returned the
2, ducked by declarer.
Without a flicker of hesitation, Ed ducked, too, and dummy's
7 won the trick.
Declarer then led dummy's
Q, which I won with
the
A. I led my remaining
heart and declarer, seeing an easy 11 tricks, took the "marked" finesse right into Ed's
K.
She became decidedly less friendly when Ed won the trick and led another heart, which took away her club ruff and her tenth trick. Totally flustered, she spent the rest of the play slapping her cards and glaring at Ed. When the hand was over, she turned to him and snapped, "How could you do that?", then proposed some "what-if-I-had-held ..." possibilities that would have made his play unsuccessful.
Some players would have taken offense at her rudeness and perhaps retorted that she was done in by her own greed, but not Ed. He just gave her a shrug and a big smile and replied, "Well, then, I would have looked pretty silly, wouldn't I?" Incident over.
It was that happy-go-lucky personality that endeared Ed to so many and brightened up every room he walked into. Our tournaments and club games will be a bit less lively -- and easier to win -- in his absence, but I have the strong feeling that "Fast Eddie" is still enjoying his favorite pastime. Somewhere, right now, he's probably playing against the greats of the game, using his old Western Rabbit bidding system and preempting his way to a heavenly championship. Congratulations, Eddie, on a game well played and a life well lived.
-- Karen Walker
A85
J9742