Lt. Col. Edward W. Gmyrek (USAF Ret.) of The Villages, FL departed this life on August 9, 2023.
Ed was preceded in death by his parents, Walter E. Gmyrek and Josephine B. Gmyrek, brother, Walter Edward Gmyrek, Jr., and sister, Rose Baert.
Ed is survived by his loving wife of 27 years, Gayle Gmyrek. His sons William Gmyrek and Douglas (Amy) Gmyrek; brother, Daniel (Patricia) Gmyrek; grandsons Alex Gmyrek, Nathan Gmyrek and granddaughter Natalie Gmyrek. In addition, he is survived by a special Uncle Joseph Gmyrek; cousins Nancy Place, Lynne Weston, Colynne Kelly, Shirley Squires, and many friends.
Edward was born in Greenfield, Massachusetts; moving to Bernadston when he was about 6 years old. Eventually the family moved to North Miami Beach, Florida where Ed attended Miami Norland High School. He was a standout athlete on both the football and baseball teams. He graduated in 1961 with a full athletic scholarship to Ohio Northern University where he played football for 4 years. He was also a member of Sigma Phi Epsilon (Ohio Alpha) at ONU and he remained active in the Alumni association throughout his life.
After graduating in 1965 with a Bachelor’s Degree in Education, Ed taught for a couple of years before joining the United States Air Force in 1967. After Officer Candidate School (OCS), basic and advanced flight training, he was assigned to flying the C-141 transports based out of Summerville, SC. Following that tour of duty Ed transitioned to rotary wing (helicopters), flying the HH-43B Husky and eventually the MH-53 Super Jolly Green Giant. He specialized in Search and Rescue, eventually flying a tour with the First Special Ops Wing. Ed also served stents as an instructor for the Air Force OCS program in San Antonio as well as doing developmental flying at Langley AFB to bring night vision goggles and GPS technology to fruition. His career culminated with the command of the 601st Tactical Control Wing (heavy lift helicopters) based in Sembach Air Base in West Germany in the mid-1980’s. His final tour of duty brought him to Marietta, Georgia where he was the Assistant Commander of the Civil Air Patrol. Ed retired from the Air Force in 1989 after more than 22 years of service.
Ed joined Eastern Airlines as a pilot for a few years. He then returned to college where he earned both a Master’s Degree in Mathematics Education and a Specialist Degree in Education. He finished his many and varied careers as a middle school math teacher in Dallas, GA. Retired from teaching, he and Gayle moved to The Villages. Ed was an avid golfer and even played in the US Senior Nationals in 2005.
A memorial service will be held at the Georgia National Cemetery in Canton, GA. August 16, 2023 at 10:00AM.
