December 11 2016: DUGGAN, Edward P.

Edward Patrick Duggan, Ph.D. (Age 70)

On Sunday, December 4, 2016, of Washington, DC. Beloved father of Lisa Duggan Weems (Wade) and Jeffry Duggan (Susanna); son of Mary Duggan and the late Gerald Duggan; grandfather of Alison, Julia, Jake, and Carson; brother of Maureen Duggan Root (Russ) and Joanne Duggan Welch (Ken). Relatives and friends may call at Collins Funeral Home, 500 University Boulevard West, Silver Spring, MD, 20901 (Valet Parking), Friday, December 16, from 3 to 5 p.m. and 7 to 9 p.m. Memorial Mass at St. Bernadette’s Church, 72 University Blvd. East, Silver Spring, MD, on Saturday, December 17, at 10:30 a.m. Interment Private. In lieu of flowers memorial contributions may be made to the National MS Society and the Downtown Sailing Center in Baltimore Maryland.

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Edward Patrick Duggan, Ph.D. (1945-2016)

Ed was born New Year’s Eve in 1945 at Walter Reed Army Hospital in Washington, D.C. to Mary and Army 1st Lt. Gerald C. Duggan.  In childhood, his fascination with reading developed into a lifelong love of learning.  Ed’s intellectual interests knew no boundaries as he went on to study first at Good Counsel High School, and then earned his B.A, Phi Beta Kappa, at the University of Maryland, and two Master’s degrees and a Ph.D. at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.  He published over 50 articles, book reviews and opinion pieces in professional journals and in the press.

Ed taught economic history at Thomas More College in Kentucky and Dickinson College in Pennsylvania before settling in Baltimore at Goucher College in 1979 where he worked as the Director of Career Development.  Ed would go on to spend  more than thirty years at Goucher.  In 1998 he was appointed Research Analyst in the Office of Institutional Research, and in 2008 he founded the Goucher Disability Initiative with the purpose of heightening awareness and acceptance of individuals with disabilities.

As a young man, Ed was diagnosed with a chronic-progressive form of Multiple Sclerosis (MS), and over time the physical effects of the disease severely impacted his mobility. Though MS slowly laid claim to his body, the disease never conquered his indomitable spirit.

Ed was fond of saying that “Those who say it cannot be done should not interfere with those who are doing it.”  He lived up to those words every day, working tirelessly as an advocate for people with disabilities, never giving up, and leading by example as he lived life to the fullest.  He ran, biked and swam.  As MS impacted his physical abilities, he learned to play wheelchair tennis and ski on snow and water.  Ed developed a passion for sailing with the adaptive sailing program at the Downtown Sailing Center in the Baltimore Harbor, and sailed in numerous regattas, encouraging many others with disabilities to join him on the water.

Ed worked extensively with the Maryland Chapter of the National MS Society, joining the Board in 1983 and chairing several committees over the years.  Ed was honored by the MS Society with many awards, including Individual of the Year (1987), Father of the Year (1992), Volunteer of the Year (1994), and in 2001 he was a National MS Volunteer Hall of Fame Inductee.  In 2006 the Ed Duggan Community Champion Award was established in his honor for those who serve the community of people with disabilities in exceptional ways.

Ed was extraordinarily devoted to his family including his mother Mary Duggan (Silver Spring, MD) and his children, Lisa Duggan Weems (Washington, DC) and Jeffry Ryan Duggan (Ringoes, NJ) and to their spouses, Wade and Susanna.  He was most proud of his four grandchildren, Alison, Julia, Jake and Carson, who brought him immeasurable joy.  He loved to visit with them and celebrate their achievements and milestones.

Ed offered a smile and a firm handshake to everyone he met.  He was an extraordinary mentor and friend to countless people from all walks of life.  His family and friends will celebrate his life with a memorial service in Baltimore in the Spring.