Edward Allen Lye, 85 of rural Akron, died Sunday, May 24, 2026 at the Yuma District Hospital.  A memorial service for Ed will be held Saturday, May 30, 2026 at 11:00 a.m. at the Foursquare Church of Akron.  A private family burial with Military Honors was held at the Akron Cemetery prior to the memorial service.

Ed was born January 24, 1941 to Bennie and Helen (Larson) Lye at Benson, Minnesota.  He grew up on a farm near Danvers, MN, the oldest of 4 children.  He developed Polio when he was 9 years old but managed to live a fulfilling life.  He attended 1st through 8th grade in a one-room school house near Danvers, MN.  He graduated high school in Benson, MN.

Ed worked for a seed and feed store and several farmers for several years before volunteering for the draft in the Army, near Colorado Springs, CO.  He was honorably discharged and went back to Minnesota.  He decided to go back to Colorado Springs and get a job in construction or plumbing.

He met a man and friend, Lynn Eastman, and they helped build the underground NORAD.  The Eastman's welcomed him into their family.  He was friends with Lynn and met their daughter, Ruth.  They married a year later on June 12, 1965 in Colorado Springs.  To this this union, 2 children were born:  Andrew John and Christopher Edward.  Their marriage lasted 60 years.

Ed started his apprenticeship, which lasted for 5 years, as a Union plumber and pipefitter.

The family moved and he worked at Butte, Montana and Danvers, Minnesota.  In his spare time, he read the Bible and accepted Jesus as his savior.  He helped construct power plants at Coalstrip, MT, Gillette, WY, Colorado Springs, CO, Craig, CO, and Brush, CO.

In his spare time, he enjoyed reading, hunting, and guns.  He decided to move back to Colorado Springs and worked for Rannel Plumbing for a time.  He still had a goal to get a farm, so he bought one south of Akron in 1977 and moved there in 1978 and worked at the Brush Power Plant, helped build a house and farm.  He was a hard worker, but managed his money well.  He loved farming and was obsessed that he had no weeds in the fields and believed in fertilizer for the fields.  He would talk to anyone about that.  He managed to have two careers until 2014.

He loved God was so glad for all his blessings.  He loved his wife, children, and grandchildren.  He also loved to help people in need.  Ed and Ruth adopted two babies as their grandchildren:  Timothy and Cassandra Gomez, and had a great time with them.

He was preceded in death by his father and mother and two brothers, James and Donald.

Survivors include his wife Ruth; two sons Andrew (Alvina) of Ottawa, KS and Christopher (Beth) of Chicago, IL; sister Gloria (D'Wayne) of Parker, SD; 4 grandchildren Ben Lye, Violet Lye, Timothy & Cassandra Gomez; and many nephews, nieces, and friends.