Edward John Plavcan

Born in Buffalo, NY, August 14, 1943 to Ethel & John Plavcan. Died in Derby, KS, April 10, 2025. Edward John Plavcan’s final act of kindness was to make sure his wife of 57 years, Carolyn, was settled and safe & healing after she recently fell. Empowering others was a deep value that he found ways to manifest daily, from cooking for community events, to helping people find scholarships, to encouraging career development . He wanted everyone he met to be the best person they could be.

Ed also had a lifelong love of learning. He was passionately curious, reading the entire encyclopedia set when he was growing up. He wanted to share his love of learning and curiosity and become a professional teacher of middle school math and science, after receiving a B.A. from Baker University. Even after he stopped being paid to teach, he continued to teach anyone who crossed his path. This sometimes included lying in wait in the home library, just off the front door entryway, as visiting friends would arrive to visit his daughter Marcia, named after his beloved twin sister, whom he missed daily after her premature death at age 18. His daughter Marcia would expect the inquisition and listen to him quiz visitors recalling in particular one of his fondest quiz questions, “What made Napoleon successful? Canning!”

Ed’s love of history and learning made him eager to travel. A favorite trip was to Europe with Carolyn . Come retirement, Ed & Carolyn loved taking RV trips, a favorite being driving to Montana to learn about the Lewis & Clark trail & from there to California to meet Marcia & their granddaughter Vaida to see Yosemite National Park. Most recently they took Vaida & Marcia to the Tallgrass National Prairie Preserve. Ed valued the native prairie of Kansas and built a custom home surrounded by it.

In addition to teaching professionally, Ed worked as an Industrial Engineer for the Boeing Co. He loved solving problems for Boeing & later coupling his aviation experience with his love of history by volunteering to help restore “DOC,” one of the two remaining operative B29 bombers from WWII. Ed liked to take his strategic problem solving to the chess board. He taught himself how to play chess in college and loved teaching and engaging others in the game, from his 8th grade students, to his daughter, to his 11 year old granddaughter, who finally beat him this past Christmas.

Ed loved being outdoors, including gardening & hunting. Each year he found joy tilling, germinating and planting a garden to help feed his family and loved having Marcia with him in the garden from an early age to learn the joy of growing things with him. His knowledge of gardening came early working with his family on their tree farm in West Seneca, NY. He left NY to attend & graduate from Baker University in Baldwin City, KS, a short drive from Lawrence, where he met his future wife at the University of Kansas, marrying Carolyn Drury in 1967 and building and spending the rest of his life in Kansas.

Ed’s gift was nurturing a love of learning and life in everyone he met.

Ed is survived by his wife Carolyn, daughter Marcia, son-in-law Neil Overmon & granddaughter Vaida.

A gift in Ed's memory can be made to Baker University if you would like to donate in his memory

Visitation will be Thursday, April 17, 2025, 6-8 p.m., at Smith Family Mortuary, 1415 N. Rock Rd., Derby, KS. Services will be Friday, April 18, 2025, 10a.m. at First Presbyterian Church, 525 N. Broadway, Wichita, KS & Sunset Lawns Cemetery, El Dorado, KS, 1 p.m.