Edward Wesley Curtis, Westfield, Indiana, passed away on July 4, 2026. He was born on August 14, 1942, in Peoria, Illinois, to Willard Wesley Curtis and Laura Ann (Woods) Curtis.

Edward excelled academically from an early age. While attending Peoria High School, he won a Bausch and Lomb Science award for building a radio telescope—an achievement that helped pave the way for his studies in Electrical Engineering at the University of Illinois. Upon graduation, he accepted a position with RCA’s television division in Indianapolis, Indiana.

In 1979, Edward took a role with RCA’s CED - Video Disc operation in Bloomington, Indiana, beginning what would become a recurring theme of relocation throughout his career. This was followed by one of his biggest life transitions in 1986: moving to Taipei, Taiwan, to manufacture monitors for Commodore. His adventurous career then took him to El Paso, Texas, where he worked across the border in Mexico, before settling outside of Syracuse, New York. There, he famously swore he wouldn't move again for at least four years.

True to his word, he kept that promise—and then promptly moved to Singapore, back to Syracuse, and finally to Carmel, Indiana. Despite RCA being acquired, split, and resold over the years, Edward was deeply proud to officially retire from his final position in Global Safety as a dedicated, full-time employee of RCA via Thomson.

Throughout his life, Edward possessed a sharp, inquisitive mind. He was an avid reader of science and history while also enjoying model railroads as was evidenced by his seemingly perpetual subscriptions to Scientific American and Model Railroader interspersed with a handful of his newest WWII books.

In retirement, he and his wife, Mary Alice, enjoyed taking occasional trips to visit friends and loved escaping the Midwestern winters at their home in Arizona. A practical man with a deeply authentic sense of humor, Edward was known to playfully blow a raspberry in response to some of the challenges life would throw his way.

Edward is survived by his sister, Sandra Powell; his children, Paul (Heather) Curtis, Robert (Julie) Curtis, and Patricia (Jeffrey) Preske; and his grandchildren, Madilyn, Andrew, Emma, Vivienne, and Parker.

He was preceded in death by his parents, and in May 2020 by his loving wife, Mary Alice Curtis, whom he married in 1965 then proceeded to travel the world with.

Visitation will be held from 12:00 PM to 1:00 PM on Thursday, July 23, 2026, at Flanner Buchanan - Hamilton Memorial Park (Prairie Waters), 4180 Westfield Rd., Westfield, IN 46062, with a funeral service immediately following at 1:00 PM. He will be laid to rest at a later date at Hamilton Memorial Park Cemetery.