Eda A. Lynn

Hamilton - Eda A. Lynn, 96, of Florida, passed beautifully, Monday, May 5, 2014, under hospice care, at the home and loving presence of her daughter, Kim (KC) York of Hamilton.

Eda, known as Edye, was born August 31, 1917 in Brooklyn, NY, to Johanna Sperling and Paul Teetz. Edye grew up with her brother George, her senior by only 14 months, during the depression. When Edye was small, their father, Paul, left the home never to return. Edye began cooking and cleaning the home at the age of 7 and would walk down to meet her mother at the bus stop after work. They grew up with ice boxes, shared baths, bread lines and Edye would speak of pulling home carts of donated food. Yet Edye would share their milk with the drowned kittens she would find in order to try and save them.

Indiscernible, Edye's formal education ended with the 8th grade. Her brother, George, entered her in a beauty contest during the Brooklyn Dodgers baseball game at Ebbets Field in 1933. She was named the most beautiful girl at the ballgame and received a bat with all the players' signatures on it. From that emerged a modeling career. Edye became a Colgate toothpaste model and was featured on the New York subways. Many referred to her as Liz Taylor look alike. Edye married Ralph Schilling in 1935. During WWII, while Ralph was stationed overseas, Edye worked as an Army civilian on Randall's Island in New York. With her doing accounting, she jokingly would say she doesn't know how we ever managed to win the war. Edye gave birth to Richard Schilling in 1945. When he was 8 years old, Edye and her new husband, moved to south Florida. Edye gave birth to Kim York in 1957. She continued some modeling and as a swim suit model at the age of 42. Edye went on to marry 4 more times, twice to the same man, Val Lynn.

Edye's uncle introduced her to the stock market and she did well. She acquired a beautiful home on the water in Pompano Beach, Florida, that was always open to her beloved northern relatives and friends. Brother George and Tanta Marianne spent years of winter months in the home and Edye and Marianne became like sisters. Edye's dear friend, little Bea, of 70 years, made the annual southern migration. Edye and Val ran an auto and marine appraisal business. For fun, they traveled the world, including 6 trips to Europe. They made annual road trips to Colorado in which she bought a vacation home in Loveland in 1983 to be near her daughter, Kim.

In 1998, Edye and Val's travels turned to Hamilton, Montana where Kim and her sons, Devin and Ryan had moved. After Val's passing, Edye was to spend summers in Montana in Kim's home, returning before the cold to her home in Florida, under her son, Rick and Joan's care. Year's later, Kim built a home in Hamilton to better accommodate her stay. Wherever Edye went she developed long term cherished friendships, giving and receiving phone calls and cards, everlasting.

Edye was full of life and always landed on her feet. In her eighties, she survived cancer. Edye was flamboyant, colorful, and turning on the charm, shared tales of laughter in her always welcome Florida home. She was the first on the dance floor, with or without Val. Such a good sport, always on the go and game, at 70, she white water rafted with Kim and at 88, they shared a Branson getaway. Edye gave endlessly, donating blood, lending money, cars, her home, bringing home homeless people, traveling to horses injured from hurricanes, buying breakfast for someone looking down and out, bringing gifts to doctors and staff. Edye never turned away a person or animal in need. She loved to plant flowers, but mostly loved animals. Edye cared about and loved anyone who came into her life, never wanting to hurt anyone's feelings, praying for them, thinking and worrying about them. They in turn all loved her. She will be terribly missed and remembered for many things but most of all, her timeless beauty inside and out and the limitless love she gave.

Edye was preceded in death by her parents; her baby, John York; her brother, George Teetz; sister in-law, Marianne Teetz; and her husband, Val Lynn. Edye is survived by her cherished children, Richard Schilling and his wife, Joan, of Deerfield Beach, FL; her daughter, Kim York of Hamilton, MT; her four beloved grandchildren, Jennifer Sweeney, and, husband, Ian, of Seattle and children, William and Alex; Christopher Schilling and wife, Shelly, of Denver, CO; Devin Splatt and wife, Tiffany, and son, Brennan, of Jacksonville, FL; Ryan Splatt and his new bride, Michelle, of Hamilton, MT; treasured nephew, Robert Teetz, and wife, Lois, of Long Island, NY; great nephews, Robert, Jr, and wife, Christine, Joseph and wife, Kim, their 4 children and great niece, Laura.

In accordance with her wishes and in honor of who Edye truly was, her body has been donated for research to MSU in Bozeman and later will be cremated with her ashes serving as mulch for a tree planting. In lieu of flowers, the family suggests memorials of your choice be made to local charities or local person's in need.