IN MEMORIAM: Edmund Partridge ‘62

The Very Rev. Canon Edmund Bruce Partridge, Class of 1962, an Episcopal priest for 60 years, who had a knack for revitalizing distressed parishes, died peacefully on April 23, 2022. He was 89.

A resident of St Michaels, MD, Partridge was born in West Orange, New Jersey on July 6, 1932 to Harold Raymond Partridge and Dorothy Shute Partridge of Southsea, England. He was the only member of his family to be born in the United States. His parents, brother and sister were all born in England. When he was a little boy, just prior to the start of World War II, he had the privilege of sailing across the Atlantic on the Queen Mary to visit his extended family in the Midlands of England. He loved the experience and spoke of it often.

Partridge was raised in Mountain Lakes, New Jersey, attending Mercersburg Academy, Lehigh University and the University of Pittsburgh, where he earned degrees in Business Administration and Physics. After college, he enlisted in the Army during the Korean conflict, serving stateside. Following the war, he met and married Carolyn Ehni in 1959.

In 1962, Partridge received his Master's in Divinity from General and was ordained to the Episcopal priesthood and the diaconate. He subsequently assumed many roles and ministries at parishes in Kansas and New Jersey. Early on, he served in New York City on the national Executive Council of the Episcopal Church, traveling widely in Europe and across the U.S. From 1968 to 1971, he served as rector of St. James Episcopal Church in Wichita, Kansas.

A splendid preacher, he taught homiletics — the art of preaching —at the College of Preachers in Washington, D.C. In 1969 he authored a book titled The Church in Perspective: Standard Lay Reader's Training Course, which became widely used in parishes nationwide. The London Institute awarded him an honorary doctorate of humane letters - LHD -- in 1973.

His ministry eventually focused on his native state, where he developed a specialty in interim ministries and began working with distressed congregations in the diocese of Newark in the 1970s.

Because the congregations often had financial limitations, he worked as a Plant Engineer during the day and met his pastoral requirements at night and on weekends. For this work, then-Bishop John Shelby Spong named him an Honorary Life Canon.

He became Dean of Trinity & St. Philip's Cathedral in Newark in 1990 and served there three years. His last assignment was five years as rector of Grace Church in Rutherford, NJ before he and Carolyn retired to Williamsburg, Virginia in 2000.

In addition to his lay reader's manual, Patridge authored two other books - The New Spirituality for Laymen and Anger, Rage and Resentment.

In addition to his parents, Partridge was preceded in death by his first wife, Carolyn; his brother, the Reverend Ivan Partridge, and his sister Margaret Pierce. He is survived by his wife, Lynn Freeburger, whom he married in 2014, eight nieces and nephews, and his dog Chappy. A loving husband and devoted pastor, Partridge cared deeply about the Episcopal church and his family. He had a marvelous sense of humor and loved animals, laying claim to 18 dogs, a cat and a mouse. In retirement he pored over Classic Car magazines, searching for one that was just right.

A Memorial Service was scheduled for Saturday, June 4th at Trinity Cathedral in Easton.

From an obituary published in the Star Democrat, Easton, MD May 29, 2022

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