Edward William O'Brien

Edward William O’Brien, Jr., 77, retired Navy Chief Petty Officer of Moline, Illinois and formerly of LeClaire, Iowa, died of complications due to pneumonia on Tuesday, February 12, 2008 at Trinity Medical Center, West Campus, Rock Island, Illinois.
Graveside services will be held at 11:00 A.M., Sunday, February 17, 2008 at Glendale Cemetery, LeClaire with military honors conducted by the Buffalo Bill American Legion Post #347 of LeClaire. Those wishing to attend the service should meet at McGinnis-Chambers Funeral Home, Bettendorf, by 9:15 A.M. Sunday. Visitation will be held from 4:00 P.M. to 7:00 P.M., Saturday evening at the funeral home. Memorials may be made to the family.
Mr. O’Brien was born June 8, 1930 in Fairfield, Iowa, the son of Edward W., Sr. and Georgia (Jackson) O’Brien. He was united in marriage to Doris M. Portz on June 9, 1956 in Princeton, Iowa. She preceded him in death on January 8, 1975.
He served in the United States Navy during the Korean Conflict and retired from the Naval Reserves as a Chief Petty Officer with over 33 years of faithful service. As the time of his death, he was retired from his work as an investment castor with the Rock Island Arsenal.
An avid volunteer and donor for the Mississippi Valley Blood Bank, he regularly drove plasma across Illinois and Iowa and was recognized numerous times for his contribution, most recently for donating over 100,000 pints of blood. He was also an active member of the Buffalo Bill American Legion Post #347 of LeClaire and the Independent Order of Oddfellows and he also volunteered for the Meals on Wheels program.
A world traveler and explorer, he enjoyed his retirement years traveling across the world, his favorite place was hiking the rolling green hills of Ireland.
Those left to honor his memory include his daughters, Annette (Danny) Taylor, of Frostproof, Florida, Vanette (Jimbo) Bradley, of Frostproof, and Jacqueline (Glenn) Eyler, of Prescott, Arizona; his sons, Edward (Kathleen) O’Brien, of Albuquerque, New Mexico, William (Selena) O’Brien, of Arnold, Maryland, and Lawrence (Tracey) O’Brien, of Moyock, North Carolina; 15 grandchildren; 10 great-grandchildren; and his sisters, Barbara Knapper, of Hackensack, Minnesota, Sara (Chuck) Luedt, of Moline, and Rose Rogers, LeClaire.
In addition to his wife, Doris, Ed was preceded in death by his parents; his sisters, Cecelia, Marguerite, Joyce, Patricia and Caroline; and his brothers, Laurence, Ernest, Terrance, Cloyd, Frances and Donald.
Online condolences may be expressed to the family by visiting Ed’s obituary at www.McGinnis-Chambers.com.