William Edward (Edd) Waldroup

Obituary: William Edward "Edd" Waldroup, 94 of Kannapolis, passed away Wednesday, March 13, 2019 at his home surrounded by his family. Visitation will be held from 12:30-2:00 p.m. Saturday, March 16 at Kannapolis Church of God,with the funeral service immediately following. The Rev. Dr. Greg Sloop and Rev. Barbara Watkins will officiate. Burial will follow at Carolina Memorial Park with Military Honors. Edd was born April 22,1924 in Madison Co. N.C. to the late Henry Crawford Waldrop and Eliza Jane Fagan Waldrop. At the age of 14, the family moved to Kannapolis so his parents could work in Cannon Mills. In December of 1943, he met who would soon be his wife, Fannie Belle Rodgers. They celebrated their 75th wedding anniversary in December of 2018. He was a long term member of Kannapolis Church of God. A veteran of WWII, he served as a Sergeant in the U.S. Army and was a Combat Engineer in the 158th Battalion. He was part of the third wave that landed at Omaha Beach, Normandy on D-Day and fought in the Battle of the Bulge. While serving he learned international morse code and aided in construction of a pontoon bridge across the Rhine River. In addition to his parents, he was preceded in death by two brothers, Tom and Foch Waldroup, and three sisters, Beatrice Young, Betty Grooms, and Gwendolyn Nunn. Those left to cherish his memory are his children Michael Waldroup (Brenda) of Kannapolis, Debbie Ezzell (Galen) of Durham, Teresa Bean (Ed) of Wilmington; eight grandchildren, Jane Johnson (Jason) of Kannapolis, April Burks (Duane) of Princeton W. Virginia, Allison Kelly (Tim)of Wilmington, Sarah Lee (Jason) of Durham, Elizabeth Godwin (Jeremy) of Durham, William Bean of Philomath, Oregon, Jacob Ezzell (Colleen) of Sanford, and Katie Crosby (Erik) of Charlotte, and 13 great grandchildren. Edd was a loving husband, father, grandfather, great grandfather and friend. After retiring from Cannon Mills in 1983 due to a disability, he was always eager to help neighbors and friends with numerous repairs and chores no questions asked. Being a self-taught blue-grass musician he was known to entertain on demand on either guitar, banjo, or fiddle and was often asked to play at schools, nursing homes, and church functions. He never met a stranger and enjoyed sharing life with others. Edd loved his Lord, his Church, his wife, his family, his friends, his music, his garden, springtime, and Old Glory. Edd loved life! Memorials may be made to Kannapolis Church of God, 2211 West A. St., Kannapolis, N.C. 28081 and Hospice of Cabarrus County, 5003 Hospice Lane, Kannapolis, N.C. 28081. Online condolences may be left at www.whitleysfuneralhome.com.
Visitation: 12:30 P.M.-2:00 P.M. Saturday March 16,2019 Kannapolis Church of God

Service: 2:00 P.M. Saturday March 16,2019 Kannapolis Church of God

Interment: Carolina Memorial Park Kannapolis