Does anyone have a picture of Wade Edwards? Such a tragedy

[greenbriar]

bet he would have been just like his dad

[proud2BlibKansan]

1. Here ya go

[Maine-ah]

2. here's a google

http://images.google.com/images?hl=en&q=wade+edwards&btnG=Search+Images&gbv=2

[CTyankee]

3. There were some amazing photos in E. Edwards' book "Amazing Graces".

The 2 chapters on his death were so hard to read I had to put it aside because I was crying so hard.

I actually wondered if John was going to mention that in the debate this afternoon. Joe Biden clearly made a reference to his own family tragedy in the question about New Year's resolutions.

It is to their credit that we have Dem candidates who have suffered such losses and lived their lives in such an exemplary fashion. I cannot forgive Rush Limbaugh for suggesting that John Edwards had a bumper sticker that read "Ask me about my dead son." It was beyond decency, even beyond belief for me...

[TomInTib]

4. So what happened to him?

Obviously, I need to start paying more close attention.

[pitohui]

6. died as a teen in a car accident

scary, one of those things that almost happened to all of us when we were that age and new at the wheel

[renate]

8. a really fluky accident...

"In March 1996, the Jeep Cherokee Wade was driving was struck by a powerful gust of wind; when Wade steered sharply to the right to correct for it, the car flipped and rolled. Wade was crushed."

http://www.boston.com/news/politics/president/articles/2004/08/03/hard_learned_lessons_drive_rival_campaigns?pg=full

From that article:
"When former senator Bob Kerrey of Nebraska recruited Edwards to run for the Senate in 1998, Kerrey warned him that campaigns can be brutal. ''John looked at me and said, 'If you've ever had to get up on a medical examiner's table and hug your son goodbye, you know that there's nothing worse that can happen to you,' " Kerrey told the Globe's Patrick Healy last year."

Boy, that's for sure.

[MarianJack]

11. My 3 Worst Nightmares are...

...losing my son, losing my wife and losing them both.

Just reading that put a lump in my throat and a tear in my eye.

[BrklynLiberal]

12. How horrilbly, horribly sad.

[BrklynLiberal]

5. Rush Limburger is sub-human, so nothing he does or says can surprise me anymore.

Remember when he made fun of Michal J. Fox's Parkinson's Disease.
I cannot come up with a fate bad enough to do him justice.

[kestrel91316]

9. Oh, I can. Just ship his fat ass off to me. I'll even pay the postage.

[greenbriar]

10. just drop him off in the middle of bagdad

he would crap his drawers

[CTyankee]

19. Id like to hear him talk his way out of that situation with some big, mean guys

brandishing swords...

Man, did I have some evil images in my head! Truly bad karma so I won't dwell on it..

[greenbriar]

7. Edwards/Biden would be a strong ticket

they both understand regular people and everyday issues

[OneGrassRoot]

13. The fact that they've both experienced such profound personal loss...

and they way they have chosen to honor their loved ones, is one of the main reasons I genuinely like Edwards and Biden. I'm an Edwards supporter additionally because of his anti-corporate stance, but I really like Biden, too.

Having lost a child, I truly believe they each keep their departed loved ones in mind when making decisions. They aren't perfect - no one is - but I believe they have an integrity many who haven't faced extreme tragedy haven't yet unearthed.

I trust them.

While everyone handles grief differently, and I try to respect that and keep it in mind, the story (and it may be urban myth...forgive my callousness if it is) about Barbara and George Sr. going golfing the same day or next day after losing their daughter haunts me.

Again, everyone deals with it differently, but there is something so crass about how they handled their tragic loss, and subsequently deal with everything else (Barbara's comments after Katrina, for example), that shows the difference between integrity and soullessness, IMHO.

[CTyankee]

21. I am so sorry to hear about your loss. Nothing can compare to that sorrow, I am sure. n/t

[libnnc]

16. Edwards/Biden would be freaking unbeatable.

Wow. That's a combo I hadn't thought of. I'd vote for that. :thumbsup:

[Blackhatjack]

14. Some details about Wade most people do not know....

This is from memory, so forgive me if I leave out or get some of the details wrong.

Wade was a very talented writer in high school, and won a national writing contest. He was in Washington DC to receive the award, and 2 weeks later was driving to the beach ahead of his family when the accident happened.

Prior to Wade's death he had talked to his Dad(John) about entering politics to make a difference. John and Wade were very close. John valued Wade's opinion and was considering this when Wade died. Wade was a sensitive and forward thinking young man, and attended the same High School that my son later attended. When Wade died John and Elizabeth tried to come up with something that would preserve and demonstrate who Wade was, which manifested itself in helping others less fortunate.

They decided to build a computer lab and training center across the street from Wade's High School which would provide computer access to students who would otherwise not have that opportunity. Through their efforts a building was purchased and renovated, a program was established to do more than just provide access but to train students, and it was staffed by competent individuals. Today that program provides an introductory training program for every entering freshman class(approximately 400-500 students) which is of such high quality that the High School requires freshmen to complete it before starting classes. It also provides a continuous opportunity to hear notable speakers, and it provides learning opportunities for parents and adults in the community when not in use for the students.

At the time that Wade died John and Elizabeth found motivation to move in a different direction, and that led to John taking on what most knowledgeable Democrats considered an impossible task --enter the race as a neophyte Democratic political candidate to challenge a Jesse Helms machine backed incumbent Republican Senator. For people who did not know him and his abilities inside the courtroom, it was a shocking upset. For those of us familiar with John's talents inside the courtroom, I can attest we were not surprised that he succeeded.

You know the rest from news accounts....

But for the longest time neither John nor Elizabeth would discuss Wade's death publicly. I think Wade had a tremendous influence on John entering politics BEFORE Wade's death, and the decision John made to enter politics was because of that positive influence --not because Wade died.

Both are such quality people that it is hard to fathom how some people in good conscience can engage in the baseless and tasteless attacks that come with the territory of entering national politics.

I believe John is right. He and Elizabeth will be fine no matter how this election campaign comes out. But our country will miss out on an extraordinary leader if John Edwards does not become the Democratic Nominee and win the Presidency.

Hope this helps.

EDITTED to correct the accident date and location. THanks LEX.

[Lex]

15. Wade was actually driving to the beach with a friend or friends

on a gusty, windy day on I-40 when the gust of wind caught the Jeep Cherokee and caused him to overcorrect and the Jeep went into the ditch. The other boy in the car was not killed.

Each time that I drive down I-40 to the beach I think of him, and of what his family must've gone through.

[Blackhatjack]

17. Correction: He had just returned from Washington DC where he won the writing award....LINK

You are indeed correct. Here is a link to an account of his death in NY Magazine...

http://nymag.com/nymetro/news/politics/national/features/4741/index1.html

"Within a year, Wade won an essay contest, expounding on the importance of each individual's vote. The award involved a trip to the White House, where Hillary Rodham Clinton honored the winners.

Two weeks later, Wade Edwards got in his Jeep with a friend to go to the family's beach house for spring break. His parents and sister planned to head down later. A weird gust of wind tipped the Jeep and Wade was pinned in the wreckage and killed. The police could find no other explanation. No drugs or alcohol were involved. The weather was sunny; the road was dry, uncrowded. The accident was inexplicable."

[OneGrassRoot]

18. Thank you...

I knew of this history, and you make a good point about Wade impacting John's political decisions prior to his death.

I was thinking about something else in the interim before posting what I did above and now. Thinking about how John, and perhaps even Joe Biden, are derided if they mention the loss of their family members. As though they are seeking a sympathy vote. Literally.

What many people may not understand is that these are huge life events that affect the remainder of their lives and are part of their lives every single day. I strongly believe wanting to be a productive, decent person is underlying their actions because of this huge event in their lives.

I would suggest it's not much different than John McCain referring frequently to his POW experience. I don't deride him for that at all; I understand it was a life-changing experience that has affected the rest of his life and always shall. Granted, his pandering has been blatant, but when it comes to his POW experience, I believe he is genuine when he speaks of that.

I guess I'm writing this to the people who slam John (like Limbaugh) when he mentions Wade. I'm more surprised when people never mention such a loss than I am when people do speak of loved ones. Too bad if it makes others feel uncomfortable, it's a big part of their lives and, I believe, they are moving forward after tragic events very honorably. Again, not perfect, but who is?

[Blackhatjack]

20. Some of us have survived 'tragedies' which we don't discuss because it invades others' privacy

It is not our right to constantly discuss the tragedies of those who have survived such events because it draws attention to them and reminds them of their loss.

And some people choose not to be defined by the tragic circumstances they have overcome. WHo are we to 'frame them by the tragic circumstances they overcame' which tends to interfere with the life they have built.

It is part of life that each of us determines what events will 'define' us. We can choose to let events 'define us' or we can put those events behind us and choose other events as those which define us.

[OneGrassRoot]

22. I agree...I think

It certainly is very individual and not to be judged.

And intruding on another's tragedy isn't the place of an outsider at all.

I was simply trying to say, evidently awkwardly, that if anyone DOES choose to have a tragedy "define" (for lack of a better word) the path they take, that is also their choice. It's not a means of gaining sympathy, it's simply a life-defining event that colors the remainder of their life and it may help others to understand them and their choices better.

I hope I wasn't saying anything offensive. I wasn't meaning to at all. I admire John and Elizabeth, Joe Biden, and, to a large extent, John McCain.

[Blackhatjack]

24. I agree with you, I was not being critical of your post...

There are life events which 'define' us all. The point I was trying to make is that while that event 'changes' me forever, it may not be my place to disclose all the details because the primary person(ie. family member) may not want to constantly be reminded of those events or be identified with that event. THis is especially true if they have gone on to make a life on their own where the past events may no longer be an issue or known by those closest to them.

[OneGrassRoot]

25. Oh, absolutely. I couldn't agree more. n/t

[CTyankee]

23. I went to Italy with a friend in the fall of 06. A youngish widow, she was recovering emotionally

from her husband's death after two years of lingering in a bed at a rehab center, unable to walk, his mind stuck in the last minutes before a car struck him causing severe brain injury. He was a highly competent, wonderful man and they had two daughters. It was such a tragedy.

She brought him up several times, usually when we were out in a quiet restaurant and dawdling, Italian style, over dinner. Little by little she talked about her feelings, how she was widowed "before I was widowed." Mostly, I nodded and listened, unable to say anything that could help because I was pretty overcome at the loss of this great guy.

I truly don't know how she got through it, just as I can't imagine how the Bidens or the Edwards's got through their sudden losses. It makes you so grateful for what you've got...