Timothy W. Edlund, a former professor of strategic management at Morgan State University’s Graves College of Business and Management, a devoted member of the Incarnate Episcopal Church and an avid sailor, died of dementia on December 13 at FutureCare Locearn Syndrome Complications in Baltimore. A resident of Homewood is 92 years old.
“Tim Edlund has a genuine love for people and he can really warm a room,” said Very Rev. Rob Boulter, Dean of the Episcopal Cathedral of the Incarnation. “He was also a curious person, always wanting to share his thoughts.”
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Marjorie G. Adams, Morgan’s professor of organizational behavior, human resources, and leadership development, is a longtime colleague and friend of mine.
“Let me start by saying, and this is the most important thing, Tim Edlund is a good guy, a very nice guy,” Ms Adams said. “I never heard Tim raise his voice, and he was never annoying if he disagreed. He’s a guy who likes to get things out.”
Timothy Wendell Edlund, the son of business consultants Sidney W. Edlund and Mary Garlichs Edlund, a homemaker, was born in Niagara Falls, New York, and grew up in the riverside community of Greenwich, Connecticut.
After graduating from Tabor College in Tabor, Massachusetts, Mr. Edlund received a BS in Mechanical Engineering from Cornell University in 1952 and served on a Korean Navy destroyer from 1952 to 1954.
In 1960, Mr. Edlund received an MBA from Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, Ohio. He received a second MBA from Boston University in 1984 and a Ph.D. in business administration two years later.
After working as a mechanical engineer in Massachusetts and Rhode Island, he came to what is now Loyola University in Maryland in 1986, where he taught until 1993 when he joined Morgan State University. A popular figure on campus, he taught strategic management until his retirement in 2018.
“Our office was next door. I was able to experience his conversations with students and faculty,” recalls Dr. Adams. “He is very supportive of his students, even if he doesn’t have a class, he’s still there. The students really like him, I don’t know a single colleague who doesn’t like him, if they don’t like him it’s their fault, and It’s not Tim’s fault.”
“He retired because he couldn’t listen to the students in his case management classes,” said his wife, Karol Menzie, a former Baltimore Sun food writer who retired in 2001.
His professional memberships include the North American Case Study Association and the International Business and Society Association.
Mr. Edlund, who lives at 100 West University Parkway, and his wife had earlier lived in Hampden.
“We lived in the Miracle neighborhood on 34th Street for a dozen years and decorated it for Christmas,” Mrs. Edlund wrote in an email.
A devout man and a lifelong Anglican, Mr Edlund traces his faith to St Paul’s Anglican Church in Greenwich, where he was an altar boy and sang in the choir.
“His faith was very important to him,” said his sister, Carol Pierce of Bloomington, Indiana.
For many years he was a Eucharist of the Good Shepherd’s Anglican Church in Ruxton, where he was a choir member and Eucharist priest.
He later became a member of Guildford Anglican Cathedral of the Incarnation, where he was also a Eucharist priest and sang in the choir.
“His faith was very important to him, and he always wanted to go to church every Sunday to support his position in the fellowship,” Very Rev. Boulter said.
He was an omnipresent and dedicated parishioner.
“He was very active in the cathedral,” said Very Rev. Boulter. “He was part of our membership, financial management and music teams.”
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Mr. Edlund’s love of the ocean and sailing began as a boy growing up on Long Island Sound. It was his family’s membership at the Greenwich Riverside Yacht Club that sparked his lifelong interest.
After moving to Baltimore, he continued his interest in sailing as an active member of the Potapskut Sailing Association, located on the Magothy River in Anne Arundel County.
“Our Cal-23 was named Cygnet, which means little swan,” Mrs. Edlund said, referring to a type of sailboat. “We didn’t sail overnight, we sailed the Magothy River and the east bank.”
“Tim is very fond of boats and he really enjoys sailing and playing with his boat,” said Shirley T. “Shirl” Wise, former Commodore of the Patapskut Sailing Association. “He and Carol are here every weekend and they enjoy the social life of the club and the partying.”
She added: “Tim is very friendly and when new members join, he goes right up to them and introduces himself. He just jumps in.”
As a globetrotter, Mr. Edlund has been to Scandinavia, Japan, England, South Africa, Australia and New Zealand. Every year he and his wife go on Caribbean and Mediterranean cruises.
An avid sports fan, he is a Ravens follower and Orioles season ticket holder who looks forward to spring training every year.
He has supported and performed in concerts with the Baltimore Opera, Maryland Lyric Opera, and the Baltimore Symphony.
The service will be held on Saturday at 2:00 pm at Mr. Edlund’s Church, 4 East University Parkway.
In addition to his wife of 15 years and sister, Mr. Edlund has a son, Stephen W. Edlund of Warwick, Rhode Island; and a daughter, Sydney Rebecca “Becky” Coe of Sudbury, Vermont Wright; and two nieces and a nephew. Early marriage to Patricia Johannsen ended in divorce.
