Edwin Earl Edenfield, age 85, passed away at Fairview Park Hospital in Dublin, Georgia, on Sunday, July 30, 2023.

The funeral service will be held on Saturday, August 5, 2023, at 1:00 p.m. at First Baptist Church in Dublin with Dr. Darrell Paulk and Dr. Cliff Morris officiating.  The family will receive friends on Saturday, August 5, from 12:00 to 1:00 p.m. in the church sanctuary.  The burial will follow at Westview Cemetery in Wrightsville.  Members of the Forum Sunday School Class will serve as honorary pallbearers.

Mr. Edenfield was the son of the late Max Edenfield and the late Irene Akins Edenfield of Statesboro.  He was predeceased by a sister, Jean Edenfield Hendrix, and her husband, George Hendrix.

He is survived by his wife, Mary Jo Fulghum Edenfield, of Dublin; a son, Edwin Earl Edenfield, Jr., and his wife, Laurie Heinrich Edenfield; a daughter, Andrea Marian Edenfield; a grandson, Edwin Earl Edenfield III, and his wife, Paige Shryock Edenfield; and a granddaughter, Madison Elaine Edenfield, all of Atlanta.  He leaves behind a sister, June Edenfield Page, and her husband, Lawrence Page.

After graduating from Statesboro High School in 1955, Earl attended the University of Georgia.  He later developed deep ties to Dublin and Laurens County.  For forty years, he successfully operated Edenfield Food Service, a vending and catering company, from which he retired in 2002.  He was a member of the Board of Directors of C&S Bank and served in the National Guard for eight years.

Mr. Edenfield was a member of First Baptist Church and the Forum Sunday School Class.  Civic and social activities included the Dublin Rotary Club, Ducks Unlimited, and Quail Unlimited.

Earl Edenfield was a sportsman, an outdoorsman, and a gardener.  He loved golfing, hunting, fishing, and birdwatching.  He made birdhouses and grew abundant crops of roses and tomatoes, which he shared with friends.  His association with the Rose Club allowed him opportunities to share his roses when there was a need for beautiful flowers.  In addition to his love of nature, he enjoyed traveling and was a lifelong fan of the Dawgs.

Memorial contributions may be sent to Dublin First Baptist Church or to St. Jude Children's Hospital.