Edward Lyons

Edward (Ed) D. Lyons, 62, of Overland Park, Kansas, passed away October 27, 2019.

Ed was born August 14, 1957 in Columbus, Ohio to parents Jack D. and Mary Louise Lyons. A naturally gifted musician, Ed’s infatuation with music started early in life when he learned to keep the beat on the snare drum to his big brother Tom’s guitar and their dad’s (often improvised and always incredible) vocals. Eager to keep learning, he took noisily to practicing on the family drum set, being steered quickly to a quieter instrument with guitar lessons from Tom. He soon took the musical lead in the Lyons household as an incredibly talented guitarist.

After graduating Hilliard Darby High School, Ed went on to study marketing at Ohio State University and later began a 30+ year career with his brother Tom at Network Direct, Inc. (NDI). His charismatic personality and enjoyment of connecting with people helped him to become a successful Vice President of Sales for over two decades.

As fate would have it, Ed met the love of his life, Kari, when he was pitching in an NDI softball game on his 38th birthday. Immediately drawn together and ultimately married in September 2002, Ed and Kari have shared nearly 25 years of life’s adventures with friends and family. They doted on their dog Grady, who will greatly miss his dad.

Ed’s childhood fascination with music grew into a lifetime of making it his own. We remember his passion for it all; listening to it, playing it and creating it, making two albums and performing over the years in his two bands Myraj and Well Strung. He affectionately celebrated life’s events, big and small, with the perfect tune, and we’ll deeply miss his zest for the music that radiated from him.

A kind and gentle soul, it has been said many times that once you’re a friend of Eddie’s, you’re a friend for life. Friends and family agree that he never met a person he didn’t like, and his loyalty and genuine care for the people he surrounded himself with were unmatched.

Ed is survived by his beloved wife Kari Lyons; sister Darlene de Lyon; brother Tom (Debbie) Lyons; and twin sister Jeannie (Bobby) Moore; his nephews Chad (Lauren) Lyons and their kids Myla Rose and Tobias; Kyle (Jinell) Lyons and their kids Bella and Joon; and Michael Reeves; his nieces Heather Wheelon and her daughters Kayla and Kylie; and Natalie Reeves and her kids Noah, Shiloh and Morgan. He is also survived by his mother in law Gloria Harville; brothers in law Jason (Stephanie) Harville; Brad (Colette) Harville and their kids Elise and Easton. He was preceded in death by his parents, Jack D. and Mary Louise Lyons.

A celebration of life will be held at 1:00 pm on Saturday, November 2, 2019 at Johnson County Funeral Chapel & Memorial Gardens, 11200 Metcalf Avenue, Overland Park Kansas, 66210. In lieu of flowers and to celebrate Ed’s desire to continue playing gigs for his charities, memorial gifts in Ed’s memory can be made to:

Brain Trauma Foundation
228 Hamilton Ave, 3rd Floor
Palo Alto, CA 94301

braintrauma.org/donate