Edwin Tonnesen

PERRYSBURG- Edwin Tonnesen, 85, died Thursday, March 16, 2017 at Hospice of Northwest Ohio.
He was born Sept. 11, 1931 in Brooklyn, NY to the late Thomas and Marie (Hobberstad) Tonnesen. Ed served in the U.S. Coast Guard from 1951 to 1954. He later earned his Ph.D. in Economics at Syracuse University.

Ed committed his life to the Lord in 1983, and he was a member of Spring Hills Baptist Church in Granville for many years. Ed had a love of life that was infectious, and he was always ready to engage in discussions about current events and politics.

After a long career in academia, he retired from his position as professor of management in the College of Business Administration, Bowling Green State University in 1996.

Ed took his family each summer back to Massachusetts to reconnect with family, friends, and the ocean. He was a loyal Boston Red Sox fan and loved all things baseball. In recent years Ed and Marilou spent their winters as snowbirds in St. Petersburg, Florida, enjoying spring training baseball games, sightseeing, and the water. Cooking and nutrition were passions of Ed’s; he spent years developing his culinary skills and passing his knowledge on to his family. He loved feeding all who entered his home.

He is survived by his wife of 37 years, Marilou (Holt) Tonnesen, whom he married May 3, 1980; four children: daughter, Hallie (Richard) Warren of Marysville; son, Jeffrey Tonnesen of Columbus; daughter, Jessica (Jamie) Blattner of Perrysburg, and daughter, Miriam (Scott) Cassell of Mt. Juliet, TN; five grandchildren: Samantha (Rick) Austin of Springfield, Luke & Mark Blattner of Perrysburg, and Ellery & Truett Cassell of Mt. Juliet, TN; and a great-granddaughter, Mya Austin of Springfield.

In addition to his parents, he was preceded in death by a grandson, Michael Warren.

A graveside service was held at Newark Memorial Gardens, Pastor Tom Pound officiated. A Celebration of Life will be held in Newark this coming June. The Fischer Funeral Home in Danville is handling arrangements. www.fischerfuneralhome.com

Because of Ed’s expressed desire for his family’s health and happiness, the family requests that any memorial gifts in Ed’s name would be made to either Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (jdrf.org) or the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society (lls.org). His two youngest daughters have lived with Type 1 (juvenile) Diabetes for many years, and his grandson Michael lost his battle with lymphoma in 2013.

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