Edward Oliveira

Stuart, Fla. — Edward “Ed” Oliveira passed away Aug. 28, in Stuart, Fla. In his later years, Ed had several health issues, but he ultimately died from a broken heart after the recent passing of his beloved wife, Helen.

Ed was born in Fall River, Mass., to Edward and Connie Oliveira. Ed, his parents and his brother Bob moved to a house on the Lee River in Somerset, Mass., where Ed and his brother were commonly found playing on the river. This was the start of Ed’s passion for the water. From then on, he enjoyed boating, clamming and fishing. As an adult, Helen and Ed, along with their daughter Dana, spent countless summers traveling the New England coast on their 32-foot boat, “Touchdown.” After retirement, Ed and Helen ventured down to Florida on their boat, through the Intercoastal Waterway, eventually retiring in Stuart, Fla. From there, Ed often cruised over to the Bahamas for some deepsea fishing trips with friends.

Fishing was not the only sport Ed enjoyed. Sports were a passion of his, and he was often found in front of the television rooting for his favorite teams: the New England Patriots, the Boston Red Sox and the UConn Huskies basketball teams. As an athlete himself, Ed enjoyed golf and was an accomplished player on the course. However, his biggest passion was football. Ed played for Somerset High School and then for the University of Rhode Island. At URI, Ed was considered a standout defensive end. He played junior varsity his freshman year and was quickly recruited to varsity for the remaining years. At URI. Ed majored in education, with a focus on physical education. Upon graduating, Ed, Helen and infant Dana moved to Schenectady, N.Y., where Ed took a teaching and football coaching position at Bishop Gibbons High School. A couple of years later, his family moved to Montville where Ed taught and coached until his retirement from education. During this time, Ed coached several football teams to championship seasons. He was also the defensive head coach for the United States Coast Guard Academy in New London, under Otto Graham. Ed was particularly proud of this, as he had served in the USCG before attending URI.

Ed was also an entrepreneur who loved the challenge of creating new business adventures during his summers off from teaching. One summer, he opened a seafood market in Montville that sold fresh, local catches and prepared foods, originating from Ed’s extensive seafood recipes that he built throughout his years cooking for friends and family. Another summer, Ed decided he and a group of his teaching buddies would build a ski house in Vermont. While constructing the house, Ed and his friends camped on the land and bathed in the nearby river. Ed gravitated toward Vermont because he and his family enjoyed skiing and wanted a place in the mountains to make weekend skiing more pleasurable. Ed loved to entertain friends at the house, and there were decades of fun times on the slopes and at the house.

Ed’s most successful entrepreneur endeavor was when he started a small screen printing shop in Groton. Ed was athletic, yet not artistic and so this idea was a bit surprising to those who knew him well. However, Ed understood how to learn and was knowledgeable about how to run a business. With his wife by his side, Ed grew a small business into a nationally recognized success, Tee’s Plus Screen Printing. The business helped many local organizations, and Ed was always honored to be able to give back to his community as a result of his generosity and knowledge.

Of all Ed’s success stories, the most important to him was caring for his family and friends. He valued honesty, integrity, grit, determination and loyalty. Education was of high importance to Ed, and he believed that any person could attain goals set for themselves when surrounded with the right “team.” Ed was always willing to help a person out when needed, and he felt very fortunate for being able to do this, as a result of his lifetime full of accomplishments. He had many circles of friends, some of his closest being his football teammates from URI, that Ed remained very close to right up to his death. He also had strong groups of friends in both Connecticut and Florida. But his greatest joy came from the 61-year marriage he had with his wife, Helen. They met in 10th grade, and immediately began dating. They later had one daughter, Dana, who then had four children. Ed’s wife, daughter and grandchildren were the “apple of his eye,” and there was nothing he would not do for them. He was a loving and devoted man who will be sorely missed and always remembered by them for his wisdom, guidance and hilarious one-liners. Ed’s wife Helen died two months and 11 days before him, after a final, short battle with breast cancer. This devastated Ed, and he felt as though he could no longer go on without the love of his life by his side. We all hope they are together again, always angels to their family and friends.

Ed leaves behind his daughter Dana Oliveira; four grandchildren, Tucker, Cassidy, Haley, and Cooper Walsh; and his brother Robert Oliveira. Ed will be remembered by many, as he touched countless lives during his 82 years. In particular, the family would like to thank all of Ed’s closest friends for their unwavering support over the past several months, including the “URI guys” Bill, Craig, Tony; the Connecticut crew Peter, Nick, Arthur and Glen; the Florida crew of Stan, George and Mike; and of course, his brother Bob. You all helped carry him during a challenging time, and he loved each of you so very much.

Due to COVID-19 restrictions, there is no memorial planned at this time. Gifts may be made in Ed’s honor to support the football operating fund at: The URI Foundation, Memo: Fifth Quarter Club/ Football, University of Rhode Island Foundation and Alumni Engagement, 79 Upper College Road, Kingston, RI 02881.