A Tribute to a Friend

by Junie Manatt Summer 1999

The news I have for Junie’s Jabbers column this time is sad news for me to share. My good friend, Ed Lonergan, passed away the middle of May. Ed and his wife had been on a cruise ship to several countries in Europe. While Ed was waiting to pick up the suitcases at the airport carousel, he fell over with a heart attack and after several days in the hospital, passed away, without ever regaining consciousness.
            Ed lived about five minutes from me in Florida with his wife of 50 years. Last August, Jackie and I chartered a plane to St. Louis for their 50th anniversary party. They lived in St. Louis for a number of years where he was manager of Universal Atlas Cement over Illinois, Iowa and Missouri. (The cement company’s name has been changed two or three times since then.)
            I started buying cement from Ed in 1979 and until Ed retired, I bought 100% of our supply from him. He was very good to do business with and I assume he felt the same way about the Manatt’s. A year or two that cement was scarce, he did everything he could to keep our plants going.
           One time Ed called me and said the Treasurer of Universal Atlas in Pittsburgh, PA wanted to come to Brooklyn to see me. Why? Well, we were buying up to $750,000. a month from them and they had no financial statement from us. I guess they looked on the map and found Brooklyn, Iowa, Pop. 1400 and wondered what was going on.
           I told Ed to let him come out, but we didn’t give our financial statement to anyone. So here comes Ed and this big shot Treasurer of Universal Atlas. He had flown out from Pittsburgh and Ed came up from St. Louis.
         We talked for an hour or so and, of course, I steadfastly refused his request for a financial statement. I asked him if I had ever missed a discount or ever not paid promptly. His answer, “No.” I asked, “Don’t you think that should be good enough?”
       “Well, we just like to have a financial,” he replied.
       And I said, “Well, you just aren’t getting one.”
       He left telling me to think it over and reconsider and he would call me in a couple of weeks for a decision. This has been at least fifteen years ago, and the poor guy hasn’t got around to calling me yet.
       I always felt Ed probably told the guy to go home and just enjoy their checks they received every month.
      One time after that, (our bill was approximately $750,000. that month) Ed called me a week or so after the check was due. He very apologetically said they hadn’t received our check. I talked to Jack right away and he assured me it had been sent a few days before it was due. I told Ed we would send him another check, which we did, and they cashed it.
      About a week later, Ed called again, very apologetic, and said our first check came. It had been mistakenly sent to Florida—and this check was also cashed. Evidently, when they decided the extra check for $750,000 went thru, they would quit worrying about the financial statement.
      I couldn’t help telling a few things about my good friend, Ed. We spent a lot of good times together in Florida, and I will miss him.