Edward Wesley Hagerman passed away with his family by his side on June 19, 2023 at Havelock Manor in Lincoln, Nebraska after a long and brave fight with Parkinson’s disease and dementia. Cremation has taken place per his wishes; and a memorial service will be held at Lincoln Memorial Park and Funeral Home on Friday, July 14, 2023 at 2:00 pm, 6800 South 14th Street, Lincoln, Nebraska. Online condolences and memories may be left at lincolnfh.com.
Ed was born on July 28, 1953 in Sundance, Wyoming to Charles and Viola (McPherson) Hagerman. He was the second of seven children and grew up on the family ranch outside Upton, Wyoming. He attended school in Upton and graduated from Upton High School in 1971. He graduated from Chadron State College in 1975 with a degree in Industrial Education and taught in Greybull and Basin, Wyoming for four years. He moved to Denver, Colorado and worked as a time-and-motion engineer at Sunstrand Aviation for a year before returning to Chadron State to complete his master’s degree in education. While there, he met his wife, Cecelia Ehrman, and they were married in Golden, Colorado on November 28, 1980. They moved to Scottsbluff, Nebraska in 1981 and he began teaching graphic arts and printing at Scottsbluff High School. He also coached football and wrestling, which he particularly enjoyed as he had wrestled in high school and college. Ed taught driver’s education every summer and during many school years through Western Nebraska Community College. In his later years teaching, he taught computer-aided drafting and really enjoyed learning the new technology right along with his students. In 1989, his wrestling team unexpectedly won the Nebraska Class A state title and he was incredibly proud of his team, as he was every year, when he knew they had given their best effort. That was always more important to him than the win/loss record. His most important titles, however, were always husband, dad, and grandpa. He loved his family more than anything and they felt the same toward him.
His health forced him to retire in 2012, and he and Cecelia moved to Lincoln in 2019 to be closer to family and medical specialists. Throughout his life, he maintained his positive and optimistic outlook, even when Parkinson’s and dementia made each day more challenging.
Ed is survived by his wife, Cecelia, and son, Ryan, of Lincoln, Nebraska; daughter and son-in-law, Miranda and Matt McKay, and granddaughter, Maddox, of Sidney, Nebraska; mother, Viola Hagerman, and brothers, Mike and Clint, of Upton, Wyoming; sisters Linda Hatch of Austin, Texas; Susan Snelson of Omaha, Nebraska, and Janet Herring of Spearfish, South Dakota; and numerous nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his father, Charles Hagerman; sister, Cathy Kraft; and nephew, David Kraft.
In lieu of flowers, memorials have been made to the Lincoln Food Bank and Capital Humane Society in Ed’s name. The family would like to sincerely thank Janine Petracek and the wonderful staff at Havelock Manor, as well as CHI Hospice, for their kind and compassionate care for Ed on his final journey.