Sgt Ernest Bertram "Colonel Ernie" Edwards (Ret'd)
-
We regret to advise of the death of Sergeant Ernest Bertram "Colonel Ernie" Edwards (Ret'd) in Halifax,NS on 25 June 2008 at age 91 years.
Born in Glen Falls, Saint John, NB in 1917, Ernest served overseas with the Royal Canadian Engineers during WW II and rose to the rank of Sergeant. "Colonel Ernie" has been described as one of Nova Scotia's most colourful and successful business leaders and most generous philanthropists. Having started out in the restaurant business on a small scale, Ernest and his wife Delia expanded their company, Edwards Fine Food, to include eight lunch counters along with their flagship "Town and Country" restaurant in Halifax. He came to be known as "Colonel Ernie" after being inducted into the Honorary Order of Kentucky Colonels by Colonel Harland Sanders, founder of Kentucky Fried Chicken. They met when Ernest was president of the Canadian Restaurant Association and he agreed to sell Kentucky Fried Chicken on the East Coast. Edwards Fine Food operated KFC outlets throughout the province and the Town and Country restaurant came to sell more KFC than any other outlet in the world.
"Colonel Ernie" and his late wife, Delia, were jointly honoured by being inducted into the Nova Scotia Business Hall of Fame in 1995. He is an inductee of the Nova Scotia Business Hall of Fame and is the recipient of the Jack C. Simms Award for Promoting Excellence in Education. He was bestowed with the Canadian Hospitality Foundation's Man of the Year Award and, with his wife, was recognized with the Nova Scotia Philanthropist's Society Community Giving Award. Colonel Ernie was an Honorary Life Director of the Colonel Harland Sanders Charitable Organization that, last year, provided a $1-million donation to the IWK Health Centre in Halifax to provide care to women, children, youth and families from the Atlantic Provinces. The Edwards Family Charitable Foundation will be a lasting reminder his generosity and concern for others.
Visitation is Friday, 27 June from 7-9 p.m. and Saturday from 2-4 and 7-9 p.m. at J.A. Snow Funeral Home, 2666 Windsor St., Halifax. The funeral service will be held Monday at 10 a.m. In the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, 205 Lacewood Dr., in Halifax. A reception will follow at the Ashburn Golf Club. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Edwards Family Charitable Foundation or the charity of your choice.{khFeb2018}[zsi,zsp]