Edward Montesinos died peacefully in his home on March 28, 2021, surrounded by family. We were all hoping for more time, but pancreatic cancer won.

Ed was born in Cuenca, Ecuador to Arturo and Luz Maria Montesinos on Dec 30, 1935. His family emigrated from Quito, Ecuador, South America to New York City in 1952, because his father started a new job for the United Nations. After Ed graduated high school in New York he met Estela. Shortly after, Ed started night school at Cooper Union School of Engineering in NYC. Estela and Ed married on July 11, 1959 (Ed 23, Estela 19). In November of 1959, his education was interrupted by the government saying, "Uncle Sam wants you!"

Ed got an early honorable discharge from the Army in 1961 to continue with his education at Cooper Union, where he received a Bachelor's in Mechanical Engineering in 1967, all the while working a full time office job to support his growing family. His job in NYC led him to work for Air Products and Chemicals in Allentown, PA, which in turn led him to Appleton, WI to work for Miller Electric Manufacturing Co. in 1977. Ed and Estela loved Appleton so much that it became their permanent home. He "retired" in August 1997 from Miller as Director of Marketing - International Division.

After his illustrious career, always a man of action, Ed immediately joined his wife Estela's company JEM Translators, a translating and interpreting business where his daughters worked as well. He helped many Hispanic people understand and discern the court system and life in general. He was well–liked and respected by all the judges, attorneys, and people he interacted with. He retired from his second career, JEM Translators, on December 31, 2020. He found it to be his most enjoyable and rewarding work.

But Ed was much more than his "work", he was also very interested and knowledgeable about medical science as well as art. For a few years in the 1980's he decided to try painting and won a prize at an amateur contest. Ed loved cars, especially American-made cars. His favorite was the Chrysler 300 C and M, of which he owned seven brand new ones. He had a great love of Spain. He and his wife traveled extensively to Spain (about 25 times) and it was Ed's favorite country in Europe. Could that possibly be because they both spoke Spanish? Throughout his life he also had a passion for the piano, especially his Steinway piano; his most prized possession. He never learned to sight-read, he just played by ear, mostly classical, but if there were any show tunes or pop songs from the 1600's to present day, he'd only have to hear it once and he could quickly play it. He also composed a few of his own pieces throughout the years and recorded the ones he could remember between February and March of this year. You can find the songs he recorded in his last two months of life on YouTube here: tinyurl.com/EdMontesinosMusic

The "magic" that Ed had was that he was a kind, compassionate, generous man who genuinely enjoyed meeting and helping people and hearing their stories. He was a true gentleman that believed in written contracts, but all you ever needed was his word...and he always exceeded expectations. He had a strong passion for life and made good, lasting friendships with people all around the world.

Ed is survived by his wife Estela and his children: Debra, David, and Cristina; 7 grandchildren: Nicole, Dylan, Leah, Elise, Sabrina, AliLee, Maria; 1 great-grandson Ryan; and siblings LuzMarina and Arturo. He is preceded in death by his brother, James. Ed's final moments were in the company of his family watching over him and his wife of 61 ½  years holding his hand as he was sleeping peacefully. He will be missed by many.

There will be a Celebration of Life on May 15th from 11am-5pm at our home at 3415 E. Lexington Drive, Appleton, WI 54915. Details about this memorial are on Facebook and can be found here: tinyurl.com/EdMontesinosMemorial