It's been more than three months since I wrote about Edward William Eldridge Jr., the retired Baltimore police officer who killed himself after he couldn't find anyone to stay with him for out-patient surgery. His death served as a stark reminder to our retirees who sometimes have no one to help them in their times of need.

A city homicide detective, Randy Wynn, who had the awful task of investgating the death, spent hours upon hours inside the former officer's home searching for a relative. He found none, and Eldridge was honored at his funeral service by former colleagues and strangers. His story touched many, and left those who did know him sad that they hadn't kept up and known he was in trouble.

This morning, I awoke to an e-mail from a cousin, the first correspondence I've received from any relative. The officer's parents are dead, he was an only child and he never married. It's another sad chapter in the day of Officer Eldridge:

Dear Mr. Hermann,
 
I little over a week ago, I learned of my cousin's death from an opportunistic, probate-research firm based in California. It appears their researchers saw your story and promptly went about digging for those missing family members and an easy cut of an unclaimed estate. Within minutes, I located Ed's obituary and your Baltimore Sun articles about his death.  I've read those articles and comments many times over. My sense of sadness growing more profound each time. Here, I am in Philadelphia reading about the tragic end and circumstances of a stranger, my relative just an hour plus away.
 
Ed's father, Ed Sr., was the brother of my grandmother, Edna Eldridge Oelschlegel. He also had three more brothers and a second sister, all of which have passed. Ed Jr. was one of eight, Eldridge first cousins and some of them, including my mom and her sister, are gone as well.
 
I've tried to remember times spent with Uncle Ed, Aunt Ruth and cousin Ed, but I only remember bits and pieces of holidays of when I was little. The last few times I saw them were at family funerals in the 80s. Christmas cards and periodic phone calls were still being exchanged then, but responses decreased with time and ceased all together at some point; not to be noticed nor picked-up by the next generation. The sad truth is that there are several Eldridge family decedents in the Philadelphia area, and none of us had any contact with cousin Ed since those funerals from what I can tell.
 
I remember Ed as Mom's nice, soft-spoken cousin who knew a lot about everything and was a policeman down in Baltimore. I was glad to read that those traits were true throughout his life & career. Thank you for bringing his story to light and raising the awareness of isolation with age and the tragic consequences of not keeping-in-touch. Thank you for helping to start the discussion within the police community about retiree outreach. Thank you for bringing me reflection on what's important.
 
Sincerely,
Karen Zglobicki