Edward F. Wallace (Eddie), age 69, devoted husband, loving father to two children, and begrudging grandfather to three grand-cats,one grand-tortoise and NO grand-dogs, passed away in the evening of January 31, 2026, surrounded by love and in the care of his wife Terese Wallace, daughter Michelle Wallace, and the compassionate staff at Rosewood Care Facility in Peabody, Massachusetts.
Eddie spent 31 years as a proud union man working for the railroad as a locomotive machinist, coming home from his long overtime shifts smelling of the manly, yet surprisingly comforting scent of diesel fuel, Safeguard Soap, and Camel Cigarettes (Speed Stick take notes and bring back the “Musk” scented deodorant #not-sponsored). His career was cut short by a 15-year struggle of medical complications and Parkinson’s Disease, requiring an early retirement of moving to Salem Massachusetts, watching “the Wheel”, eating good snacks, and suspiciously always winning at Threes, though he swore he didn’t load the dice.
He spent 50 years with the love of his life, Terese. Let the history books show that their long and happy marriage was attributed to him never begrudging her for losing the secret whoopie pie recipe that his mother had bestowed to only her. In fact, he continued to eat the whoopie pies she made, even though they both knew they were never as good as his Mom’s, but nary a word was ever spoken between them of this failure.
On that sub-freezing, icy-roaded, St. Brigid’s Eve, with Terese by his side, Eddie’s last words were in classic Dad style; “Did Shelly (Michelle), make it home safe”. Only after he knew she was safe did he feel ready to hitch a ride with St. Brigid up to heaven, where he reunited with the ol’ Lowell Daley School crew to drink a Bud, smoke a butt, cheer on the Pats, check out the next Ozzy concert, and most importantly, to finally enjoy his Mother’s whoopie pies (true to the secret recipe).
In lieu of flowers, the Wallace family is collecting contributions for the School of Herbalism hosted at Artemisia Botanicals in Salem Massachusetts. Eddie loved his daughter deeply, and she loved him just as fiercely. Michelle began her herbal studies in the hope of finding ways to better care for her father during his illness. The mentorship, knowledge, and community that Michelle found through this program became an invaluable part of supporting and caregiving for Eddie with comfort and dignity in his final years. This fund would honor Eddie’s legacy by supporting the continued sharing of this knowledge with others who are caring for the people and communities they love.
Donation Link: https://gofund.me/a272043fa
Funeral services will take place privately.