Edward J. O'Connor, Jr., 96-year-old father, grandfather and great-grandfather, passed away peacefully at Mission Hospice House in Redwood City on Friday, December 9, 2022.
Ed was born in San Francisco on December 24, 1925 to Edward and Loretta O'Connor. He had one sister, the late Rita (O'Connor) Franco, who was his life-long best friend. Ed would lovingly recall the large extended family from his childhood—lots of uncles, aunts, and cousins who were important and formative parts of his life. He grew up in the Portola District in San Francisco and was a proud graduate of Sacred Heart High School. Following his Thursday graduation from Sacred Heart in 1944, he enlisted in the Navy the following Monday. Ed served on the USS El Dorado in the Pacific until the end of World War II, and was very proud of his military service.
Ed met and married the love of his life, Sophie, shortly after returning home from the war. They met at the Granada Theatre in San Francisco and were married for 68 years until she passed away in 2016. They had a great marriage and enjoyed their family, friends, travel and an active social life.
Ed leaves behind a close-knit family who will miss him dearly: Christine Regan (Frank), Nancy Owen (Tom), Judy Passaglia (Frank) and Dan O'Connor (Camilla); as well as seven adored grandchildren: Tom Owen (Kristen), Kathryn McCarthy (JJ), Ryan Owen (Nicole), Laura McCarthy (Ryan), Jennifer Regan, John Passaglia (Sara), and Ally O'Connor; and seven great-grandchildren: Connor and Kenna Owen, Barrett and Mills McCarthy, James and Cora Owen, and Stella McCarthy. They all loved their Dad/Grandpa/Papa Ed and he was blessed to enjoy all of his children, grandchildren and great grandchildren. When the family was together, Ed often said "It doesn't get better than this.” Family was everything to him.
Ed was a proud and loyal employee of PG&E, where he worked in Marketing for 35 years. When he retired, he enjoyed playing tennis, traveling and spending time with Sophie, family and friends.
Ed and Sophie raised their family in San Francisco, but ultimately relocated to the Peninsula in 1979, where they quickly became active in their parish and the local senior’s club. Until two weeks before his passing, Ed attended weekly bingo at the Burlingame Community Center, where he enjoyed the company of fellow players and was quite lucky.
Ed was an avid sports fan and supported the San Francisco Giants, 49ers and Warriors until the end. He could talk sports and relay the history of teams, players and statistics with amazing recall and accuracy. He also followed his grandchildren and great-grandchildren as they progressed on various sports teams, and often helped with coaching.
After losing (and greatly missing) Sophie, Ed remained independent and thrived with the support of his family. In August 2021, he moved to Sunrise Assisted Care in San Mateo, where he again made new friends and immersed himself in yet another community. Most recently, he was cared for lovingly by Mission Hospice where he developed genuine rapport with his caregivers and again developed mutually meaningful relationships. Ed truly connected with people at every single station of his life.
Our family greatly appreciates the outpouring of support and condolences. If you would like to make a donation in Ed's memory, please consider Sacred Heart Cathedral Preparatory in San Francisco or Mission Hospice in San Mateo. A private memorial service will be held in January.
On Christmas Eve, Ed would have turned 97. Over the holidays, if you enjoy a "Happy Hour" with someone you love, please raise a toast to Ed in celebration of his life.
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Keep the discussion civilized. Absolutely NO personal attacks or insults directed toward writers, nor others who make comments.
Keep it clean. Please avoid obscene, vulgar, lewd, racist or sexually-oriented language.
Don't threaten. Threats of harming another person will not be tolerated.
Be truthful. Don't knowingly lie about anyone or anything.
Be proactive. Use the 'Report' link on each comment to let us know of abusive posts.
PLEASE TURN OFF YOUR CAPS LOCK.
Anyone violating these rules will be issued a warning. After the warning, comment privileges can be revoked.