Obituary for Edward Carl Goodstein
Edward C. Goodstein
1947-2022
Ed was truly a one of a kind gift to all who knew him. Born in Philadelphia to Sidney and Katherine Goodstein, Ed grew up in the suburb of Upper Darby. He attended American University, then Framingham State College, where he earned a Master of Science in Food and Nutrition, and University of Massachusetts for a Master's in Counseling. He practiced as a nutritionist, counseling the fortunate folks who got to work with him.
Ed’s wonderful qualities as an ideas man, an artist, a natural comedian/humorist, and a perceptive, empathic soul, came out in Carrotman, the superhero he created: "Faster than a slippery banana peel. More powerful than prune juice. Able to leap tall corn fields in a single bound. It is not a bird or a plane. It is indeed something, someone called Carrotman." Appearing as Carrotman throughout the 1980s and early '90s, Ed provided nutrition programs to preschoolers, elementary school children, and hospitals while dressed in a costume of orange coveralls, green cape, hero's mask, and colorful sneakers.
Ed's generosity was remarkable, and included individuals in need, the Food and Nutrition Resources Foundation he established in 1976 that still exists today, and the Sidney V. and Katherine B. Goodstein Scholarship fund at Framingham State College. And if you were lucky enough to deliver something to Ed's house or provide a service for him, you were treated to a Dunkin' Donuts gift card.
Ed was ahead of his time in working to make the world a better place. His interest in politics started at American University when he was elected junior class president with the slogan "Good Government with Goodstein." In the 1970s he developed a recycling program, and in 2003 he created the website Peace is Patriotic, which marketed bumper stickers including "Support Peace Officers" and "When Government Lies, Democracy Dies."
Every day Ed was revitalized by his love of nature and animals. Many friends said they would like to be reincarnated as Ed's dog. Birds were fed on his backyard deck many times daily. Ed walked twice a day for 35 years in his beloved Middlesex Fells Reservation. And when he knew his time was limited and he could no longer care for his dog Shadow, he found a wonderful home for him.
Ed's gratitude for life and courage in the face of death deepened in 2003 when he underwent liver and kidney transplants at Lahey Medical Center. Over the next 19 years, as his renewed body was slowly giving out, his sense of what it means to be alive and his ability to talk about death grew. He asked his partner of 16 years to "walk him all the way home," and she did, along with his devoted friends and family. They were by his side and on the phone—often laughing with him, and at the same time sharing the sadness of the end of life. Care Dimensions Hospice provided invaluable nursing, spiritual and emotional support. Ed peacefully traveled to the other side on Sunday, February 20th, 2022.
Ed had a natural way of drawing out others with a mixture of curiosity and acceptance. Whether friends, family, caregivers, or strangers he met on the street, people got to know themselves better (and feel good about that) after talking with him. Young adults were drawn to him and he to them. Ed showed us all that in little ways every day we can make the world a better place—for ourselves, for those around us, for the animals, and for the planet. He lived by the Zen Commandments he wrote for himself, forever practicing to be a better person. Ed was a handsome and humble mensch among mensches.
Ed lovingly leaves his stepdaughter Kathleen Typhair; his beloved partner Laura Englander and her sons Caleb and Aaron and their wives Amy and Karen; his grandchildren Ava, Max, and Rosa, to whom he was Grand-Paw; his caring, close group of cousins and his Aunt Estelle Bensen and, his dog Shadow.
Donations in honor of Edward Goodstein can be made to:
Care Dimensions Hospice
Donate online at caredimensions.org, or mail to Care Dimensions, 75 Sylvan St, Suite B102, Danvers, MA 01923
Food and Nutrition Resources Foundation
Please mail contributions to Food and Nutrition Resources Foundation Inc. 333 SE 20th Avenue, Suite 104, Deerfield Beach, FLA 33441. ATT: Virginia Aronson, RD, MS
To learn more about the foundation go to: fnrfoundation.org
1947-2022
Ed was truly a one of a kind gift to all who knew him. Born in Philadelphia to Sidney and Katherine Goodstein, Ed grew up in the suburb of Upper Darby. He attended American University, then Framingham State College, where he earned a Master of Science in Food and Nutrition, and University of Massachusetts for a Master's in Counseling. He practiced as a nutritionist, counseling the fortunate folks who got to work with him.
Ed’s wonderful qualities as an ideas man, an artist, a natural comedian/humorist, and a perceptive, empathic soul, came out in Carrotman, the superhero he created: "Faster than a slippery banana peel. More powerful than prune juice. Able to leap tall corn fields in a single bound. It is not a bird or a plane. It is indeed something, someone called Carrotman." Appearing as Carrotman throughout the 1980s and early '90s, Ed provided nutrition programs to preschoolers, elementary school children, and hospitals while dressed in a costume of orange coveralls, green cape, hero's mask, and colorful sneakers.
Ed's generosity was remarkable, and included individuals in need, the Food and Nutrition Resources Foundation he established in 1976 that still exists today, and the Sidney V. and Katherine B. Goodstein Scholarship fund at Framingham State College. And if you were lucky enough to deliver something to Ed's house or provide a service for him, you were treated to a Dunkin' Donuts gift card.
Ed was ahead of his time in working to make the world a better place. His interest in politics started at American University when he was elected junior class president with the slogan "Good Government with Goodstein." In the 1970s he developed a recycling program, and in 2003 he created the website Peace is Patriotic, which marketed bumper stickers including "Support Peace Officers" and "When Government Lies, Democracy Dies."
Every day Ed was revitalized by his love of nature and animals. Many friends said they would like to be reincarnated as Ed's dog. Birds were fed on his backyard deck many times daily. Ed walked twice a day for 35 years in his beloved Middlesex Fells Reservation. And when he knew his time was limited and he could no longer care for his dog Shadow, he found a wonderful home for him.
Ed's gratitude for life and courage in the face of death deepened in 2003 when he underwent liver and kidney transplants at Lahey Medical Center. Over the next 19 years, as his renewed body was slowly giving out, his sense of what it means to be alive and his ability to talk about death grew. He asked his partner of 16 years to "walk him all the way home," and she did, along with his devoted friends and family. They were by his side and on the phone—often laughing with him, and at the same time sharing the sadness of the end of life. Care Dimensions Hospice provided invaluable nursing, spiritual and emotional support. Ed peacefully traveled to the other side on Sunday, February 20th, 2022.
Ed had a natural way of drawing out others with a mixture of curiosity and acceptance. Whether friends, family, caregivers, or strangers he met on the street, people got to know themselves better (and feel good about that) after talking with him. Young adults were drawn to him and he to them. Ed showed us all that in little ways every day we can make the world a better place—for ourselves, for those around us, for the animals, and for the planet. He lived by the Zen Commandments he wrote for himself, forever practicing to be a better person. Ed was a handsome and humble mensch among mensches.
Ed lovingly leaves his stepdaughter Kathleen Typhair; his beloved partner Laura Englander and her sons Caleb and Aaron and their wives Amy and Karen; his grandchildren Ava, Max, and Rosa, to whom he was Grand-Paw; his caring, close group of cousins and his Aunt Estelle Bensen and, his dog Shadow.
Donations in honor of Edward Goodstein can be made to:
Care Dimensions Hospice
Donate online at caredimensions.org, or mail to Care Dimensions, 75 Sylvan St, Suite B102, Danvers, MA 01923
Food and Nutrition Resources Foundation
Please mail contributions to Food and Nutrition Resources Foundation Inc. 333 SE 20th Avenue, Suite 104, Deerfield Beach, FLA 33441. ATT: Virginia Aronson, RD, MS
To learn more about the foundation go to: fnrfoundation.org