MONROE – Albert Kenneth Edelston, born Sept. 2, 1949, died suddenly of a heart attack at home in Monroe, July 14, 2004. Ken was predeceased by his brother, Stephen; his son, Alexander; and his parents, Ellen and Rudy Edelston. He is survived by his daughters, Sara Edelston and her fianc?, Eric Lieser, and Allegra Edelston; his wife, Mallery Dalto; and his stepdaughters, Rachael and Georgia Dalto; his former wife, Clarissa Edelston of Hampden; his cousins, Vicki Edelston and Jay Edelston; and his uncle, Frederick Edelston of Burlington, Wis. Ken graduated from Haverford College in 1971, and took his masters of education from the University of Pennsylvania. He directed the Job Corps of Bangor, worked in the Alcohol Family Institute at Eastern Maine Medical Center, was substance abuse counselor at Hampden Academy and was a family and substance abuse counselor at West Bay Counseling in Belfast. Ken’s life was gouged by loss. His father died when Ken was 13, his brother when Ken was 19, his mother, having suffered long with depression, died when Ken was 29, and several years later his 22 month old son, Alex, died. Ken’s own life-long war with clinical depression eroded much of what might be considered traditional success. Despite these losses Ken said of his life, “I wouldn’t trade it for anyone else’s in the whole world.” Ken was motivated in his work and life by people who were trying to make sense of life, who were searching for and surrendering to God and joy, and who were willing to speak about their experiences. He loved ordinary days, great food and music, a good pipe, roses, the soft belly of our dog, Sadie, his four daughters and their impressions of the puzzle, his dear friend, Philip, all his hundreds of other friends, playing the recorder, driving a good car, collecting wild mushrooms, computers and what they could do, movies, ideas, communication, irreverent humor, tea time, God, lying in bed with me and talking. My husband, my ‘great tree of a man’ didn’t know how to manipulate or deceive people. He knew nothing of greed or evasiveness. He was far from perfect and for that I loved him. I cannot imagine life without him. I cannot imagine never hearing his deep true bass singing, laughing, sobbing and filling our lives. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions can be made to DYC (Dhyanyoga Centers) scholarship fund, P.O. Box 3194, Antioch, CA 94531. There will be a memorial service celebrating Ken’s life at 6:30 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 12, at the Belfast Boathouse.
KEN EDELSTON
