Brewer, Edgar W.

Edgar W. (Proctor) Brewer was born in London, England on 
December 16, 1917, and died August 7, 2010 at home in 
Seattle. He passed peacefully in the presence of family after 
having spoken with many family members and friends in his last 
days. He is preceded in death by his wife, Ruth Morris Brewer 
and his parents, Emily Perkins Proctor and William James 
Proctor. He is survived by his daughter Ellen Mortensen and her 
partner Chris Southwick, his son James Brewer and his wife Mary 
Roberts, and grandchildren Laura Mortensen, Emma Hite, and 
Alexander Brewer. Ed moved to Canada as an infant and then 
the United States in 1925. After his junior year of high school 
when his stepfather's ranch in Colorado was failing, he rode the 
rails to find work in California. He worked in a sardine cannery 
in Benicia, where he was taken into the home of the town 
constable who insisted that he finish high school. After doing 
so and moving to Yakima, Washington to join his parents he 
attended college in Yakima and later received degrees from the 
University of Washington and the University of Chicago. He 
served in the Army during WWII, first in the infantry where he 
left as regimental staff sergeant major. He joined the Army Air 
Corps and was navigator on B-24 bombing missions flown from 
Shemya Island in the far western Aleutians. He persuaded his 
crew to disobey orders by dumping unused bombs in the 
ocean rather than bombing Japanese fishing boats. He also 
convinced them not to bomb whales for sport. Ed's long life 
was full of interesting incidents, including once distractedly 
walking headlong into Salvador Dali on the streets of New York, 
whereupon each man bowed in apology and walked on. Ed's 
professional career as a social worker focused on juvenile 
justice and corrections. He worked for the King County Juvenile 
Court in Seattle, the U.S. Children's Bureau in Washington, D.C., 
and many other government agencies and private non-profits. 
He was appointed Director of the Federal Anti-Poverty Program 
in Lane County, Oregon in 1965, and associate professor in the 
newly founded School of Community Service and Public Affairs 
of the University of Oregon in 1969. In 1972 he established 
Corrections Consultation Services and advised local, state and 
federal agencies in 14 states. Ed and Ruth built a cabin in Port 
Orford, Oregon where they spent much of their free time. After 
retiring in 1978 they traveled extensively in Europe, Asia, and 
Australia. In the last decades of his life Ed connected with 
relatives in England and half-siblings in Canada and enjoyed 
visiting them and being welcomed into their lives. At age 91 Ed 
moved to Seattle to be near his children. His family would like 
to thank the doctors and staff of the University of Washington 
Medical Center. Ed asked that donations be made to Doctors 
Without Borders in lieu of flowers. There will be a celebration 
of Ed's life at 2:00 p.m. on September 12th at the 
Meadowbrook Community Center in Seattle.

Published in The Seattle Times on August 22, 2010