OBITUARY Edward James McNamara April 18, 1930 – October 20, 2018 Edward (Ned) James McNamara, 88, of Columbus, OH passed away suddenly on October 20, 2018 at Brookdale Trillium Crossing retirement community in Dublin from aortic stenosis after an 11-year battle with chronic lymphocytic leukemia. Ned was born in Troy, NY on April 18, 1930 to John and Ellen (Fennelly) McNamara. He graduated from Lansingburgh High School which is where he met his beloved wife Joan (Elder) whom he married in 1949.
Ned was a medic in the 105th Infantry Regiment of the 27th Division Medical Corps, New York State Army National Guard, training at the Troy Armory and Pine Camp (now Fort Drum). When his father died shortly after Ned graduated from high school, he went to work in advertising at Behr-Manning Company of Watervliet, NY which was bought by the Nashua Corp of Nashua, NH. He became the regional sales manager for industrial paper products, overseeing a territory of the industrial heartland that stretched from Pittsburgh across central Ohio to Detroit.
Ned enjoyed the challenges of his career and was at times the highest-paid sales manager in the company with the most successful sales. He retired in 1995. Ned and Joan settled in Columbus, OH in 1960 where they started McNamara Properties, a real estate management company they ran from the early 1970s until 2010.
During this period he served multiple terms as president of the Parsons Avenue Merchants Association, ran the Parsons Street Fair for many years, served on the Ohio Reinsurance Board and was a member of the Columbus Maennerchor. Throughout his life he was active in many civic and philanthropic organizations, including the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation of New York, the South Side Settlement House and LifeCare Alliance. Ned was predeceased by his wife Joan who passed in 2010, his parents, his in-laws (John and Grace Elder of Troy NY), one brother, and one brother-in-law.
He is survived by his three loving children Mary Jo of Potsdam, NY, John of Charlotte, NC (and Robin Carswell McNamara), and Ted of Sherman Oaks, CA (and David Stamper), his two grandchildren Brittany Anderson (and Tanner) of Billings, MT and Brian McNamara of Wilmington, NC, as well as his six brothers and their families, his sister-in-law Kathy Elder and family, and his cousin-in-law Susan Farrelly. Ned loved his Irish heritage, the Ohio State Buckeyes, and the Ohio State Fair (where he won several ribbons in the baking division). He was admired and well-liked by his many friends for his affability, sense of humor, tolerance for others and his willingness to always listen to those in need and assist with compassionate advice and practical help.
He is remembered especially by his children and grandchildren for his life-long love of education and words of wisdom. A viewing will be held Thursday, October 25, from 6:00-8:00 p.m. at McEwen Funeral Service at Sharon Memorial Park,5716 Monroe Road, Charlotte, NC 28212, (704) 334-6421, and the funeral mass will be held on Friday October 26 at 10:00 a.m. at St. Gabriel’s Church, 3016 Providence Rd. Charlotte, NC 28211.
In lieu of flowers, and in remembrance of Ned’s beloved wife Joan, the family requests that donations be made to the Ovarian Cancer Research Fund, www. ocrf.org, 14 Pennsylvania Plaza Suite 1400 New York, NY 10122.
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