“It seems there is good in all God’s creatures, even me.  Remember to maximize your time and the special times will be even better and elongated.  There is much good I see in the future.  Now is the minute which I change into what I want to be. 

Work needs to be done on a daily basis.  This requires focus and discipline.  Now I have turned a corner.  No more looking back… only looking towards the future.”  As taken from Ed’s Journal.

How do you describe a guy who was beyond description to people? 

PMA: Personal Mental Attitude. Ed Stanko was a son, brother, uncle, cousin, friend, mentor and coach.  Ed would see the beauty in everything.

  He believed in our possibilities more than we did. He would make you believe that great things were possible because he believed it.  And he really believed it.

He loved his father, Ed and his mother, Marie, he was a loving brother and he was a second father to his sister Lisa’s children: Caitlin, Jack, Liam, Malachy and Marie. 

He was a beloved cousin and friend to so many. 

Eddie believed in family.  He was always there for his Mom, Dad, sister, grandmother, aunts, uncles, nieces and nephews

Eddie was the most focused, dedicated and committed person we have ever known.  In life we have many acquaintances and few friends. 

Eddie was a true friend.  He was always interested in what kind of person you were.  If he took an interest in you, it was because he saw the possibility of great things in you and he demanded those great things from you.  He would be angry with you if you didn’t try your best to live up to your potential.

He was a leader who had a vision for the team and his players. 

They believed in him, they trusted him, they respected him and they loved him because he gave them all he had.  Ed would pick them up, take them to home, and go to watch them play in school games and rec games.  He was always focused on how they could be better. 

Ed said: “Give me someone who is committed and I can make a superstar.  Talent only goes so far, commitment is the strongest gift”.

Ed was always happy to see you.  He greeted everyone he knew like it was the last time he was going to see you. 

He made you feel special.  He always made you feel like you were the most important person to him when you were together.

Our brother, Eddie was just a man, but he was the example of what we can all do in this life.

It has taken many turns for my ship to get in the right direction.  I thought it would never happen.  It seems like a miracle, this is a minute by minute task which I never realized”, Ed wrote.  “Maintaining proper focus is the key, but at the same time being aware is the key. 

Will I be missed when I am gone?” he asked?

Yes Eddie you will be missed by all of those lives which were fortunate enough to cross your path.

Show love of life and life of love will sprout up around you.

At the request of the Stanko family, to those considering sending flowers or similar items:

Instead, please make a contribution in Ed's name to the Somerset Hills Athletic Association.

That is his baseball and softball program and would do the most to perpetuate that legacy for him.

Somerset Hills Athletic Association
442 Route 202-206 North, Suite 483
Bedminster, NJ 07921