Edward J. Barkhorn died peacefully on Tuesday, November 6, 2018 surrounded by his loved ones.

Born in 1926 to Catherine and Charles Barkhorn in South Orange NJ, he joined a busy household of two sisters, Jeanne and Mary and two brothers, John and Billy. He attended Columbia High School and was a veteran of WWII.  His Catholic faith was forever strengthened during a Christmas midnight mass held in Japan while on his tour of duty.

After serving in the military he joined the family lumber and millwork business. From there he embarked on a successful custom home building career. With the love of his life, Marie Selzer Barkhorn, he raised his family in Short Hills, NJ for over 25 years before retiring to Vero Beach, FL where he continued to dabble in home building, leaving behind three beautiful designs in Seagrove.  He is survived by his loving wife, Marie and five children, Lisa (Bill) Foley, Edward Jr. (Madeline), Jeffrey (Deborah), Virginia (Michael) Lembo, and Andrew (Laurie). He cherished his eight grandchildren, Sloane, Paige, EJ, Hunter, Cassie, Catherine, Elizabeth, and Sam.

He was a daily communicant at St Rose of Lima in Short Hills and Holy Cross Church in Vero Beach for many years.  Arriving before the church doors opened at St. Rose so frequently he was given the key to the church. He was an active member of both parishes as a Eucharistic Minister and held the position of Treasurer of the Serra Club.  Even in his early years he was service oriented collecting day old bread from supermarkets and bakeries to be distributed to shelters in Newark.

He enjoyed his volunteer work at St Vincent de Paul, as well as Indian River Medical Center where he happily eased visitor's minds as he transported them to their loved ones in the hospital. He was a generous blood donor giving close to 100 pints of blood in his lifetime finding it "the easiest way to lose a pound".

With a twinkle in his eye, he never failed to bring a bit of joy into people's lives daily saying "smile" to anyone from toll collectors to cashiers at Publix.  He had the delightful ability to turn life's lemons into lemonade and it was contagious.

He was happiest in the kitchen creating gourmet delights for family and friends or beating the pants off his bridge opponents. He enjoyed his wide circle of friends and was never one to refuse a party invitation.

A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated at 10:00 AM, Thursday, January 10, 2019 at Holy Cross Catholic Church in Vero Beach. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to St. Vincent de Paul, 1745 14th Ave, Vero Beach, FL 32960. Online condolences may be made at www.coxgiffordseawinds.com