Edward Budny

Edward “Ed” Budny passed away in Merrillville, Ind., at the age of 96. He is survived by his wife of 74 years, Mary Budny; son Edward; daughter Kelley Alani and son-in-law David Alani; grandsons Joseph and Tommy Alani; granddaughter Hannah Alani and grandson-in-law Grant Williams; and sister, Verna Mae “Tillie” Budny.

Ed was born on Dec. 21, 1928, in Iron Mountain, Michigan. The second-youngest of 10 siblings, Ed grew up in a large Polish-American family. His father and older brothers worked in the iron mines during the Great Depression. Though times were challenging, Ed greatly enjoyed his “Yooper” childhood – eating pasties, sledding down snowy hillsides, foraging for wild blueberries, bird-watching, and chasing the Northern Lights.

In early adolescence, Ed moved to East Chicago, Ind., where he lived with relatives. He graduated from East Chicago-Washington High School, where, in addition to academic courses,  he apprenticed (and later accepted a position with) Youngstown Steel.

While in high school, he met a young Mary Budack of Griffith. The daughter of Romanian-Americans, Mary was introduced to Ed through mutual friends. Their blind date at the ice cream parlor left Mary with a crush on the older, “good-looking” Ed. Their next date was at the Paramount movie theater, where Mary ordered both popcorn and candy. Though he worried she may be “high maintenance,” Ed was smitten. The mutual crush quickly turned to love, and the pair wed on Dec. 2, 1950.

Eager to introduce Mary to his family, Ed drove them through a snowstorm to Iron Mountain, MI, where they honeymooned at the historic Dickinson Hotel. This would be the first of many trips “up north” for the couple, as Mary fell in love with Michigan’s clean air and wild beauty.

In 1952, Ed was drafted by the U.S. Army to serve during the Korean Conflict. While stationed in Germany, he greatly admired the beautiful geography and the friendliness of the people and thus began a lifelong passion for photography. 

In 1955, Ed and Mary welcomed the birth of their son, Eddy. The new father worked hard at the steel mill, often pulling double shifts until he could afford to purchase a house blueprint from Family Circle Magazine. During the late ‘50s, with the help of Mary’s brothers, he constructed the first tri-level home in Griffith. The red brick and cedar-sided home was featured in The Hammond Times. In this home, Ed and Mary welcomed the birth of their daughter, Kelley.

A devoted father, Ed instilled his love for nature into his children. One of Kelley’s earliest and most treasured memories is of holding her dad’s hand and discovering the native plants and animals indigenous to the Indiana Dunes. In the early ‘70s, Ed and Mary purchased 11 acres of vacant land in southern Indiana’s beautiful Brown County. During a hot summer, he and his kids and nephew camped in tents while Ed designed and constructed a two-story cabin on the property. 

He and Mary took their children on many cross-country road trips. Over the years, the campers made it to Vermont, New Hampshire, Maine, Nova Scotia, Wisconsin, and, of course, the Upper Peninsula. Eventually, he invested in his favorite outdoor vehicle of all – a 3-bed aluminum Airstream. 

In the early 1980s, just before sending their daughter to college, Mary surprised Ed with a new project when she announced that she had purchased a piece of property the two had long admired: an old abandoned farmhouse, half burnt from a fire, set against a magical backdrop of a northern Indiana swampland. 

Ed eagerly tackled Mary’s “dream home” with ingenuity and creativity. He used local reclaimed materials to build a new wing onto the existing structure. He designed open spaces to display Mary’s antiques. As a lifelong organic gardener, Ed nurtured a garden where, for four decades, he provided an abundance of tomatoes, peppers, onions, corn, blueberries, and his favorite, “cukes” (cucumbers) to family and friends. He landscaped the front, side, and back yards with a variety of indigenous flowering plants. Ed possessed a keen intuition and knowledge of plants. Before going out to visit family, he would pick bouquets of whatever was growing, earning a nickname “the flower man.” 

A mutual hobby Mary and Ed shared was antiquing. For Ed, his prized possession – a 1931 Ford Model A – garnered him countless 1st place trophies at local car shows. He loved anything related to animals, specifically wooden carved duck decoys. Although Mary had more collections, Ed supported her as she operated three antique booths across Indiana, serving as the “wheels” that would transport Mary’s hidden gems from yard sales and flea markets to the antique malls. 

Another love Ed and Mary shared was their deep, profound appreciation for animals. Ed’s first pet was a rabbit – and that was not his last bunny. Throughout their children’s childhoods, they had dogs, cats, and even ducks. Ed tended to a goldfish pond in Merrillville, keeping the same fish alive for years. 

In 1993, Ed retired from LTV Steel after 47 years of service. Retirement granted him more time for his hobbies: gardening, woodworking, birdwatching, and film photography. It was also well-timed for his new role in life: Grandpa. 

When Hannah was born in 1995, Ed embraced this new chapter. He built an elaborate dollhouse, carving wooden shingles for the roof and hand-painting the siding. He taught Hannah how to ski in the winter and bike in the summer. Hannah loved joining Grandpa at car shows, sitting proudly in the Model A’s “rumble seat” as the judges came by. Weekends involved Friday fish frys at St. Michael’s, where Ed ate his fill on pierogies, and trips to Whiting Beach to hunt “sea glass.” 

Throughout the 1990s and 2000s, Ed and Mary spent many summers and autumns at the cabin in Brown County. Joey was born in 2001 and Tommy in 2002. Ed made his famous “pudgy pies” – two pieces of white bread with apple pie or blueberry filling – over the fire. Sunday mornings were for “Grandpa’s pancakes” – thinly poured Bisquick mix; half plain, and half with bacon strips placed gently into the batter. He carefully poured sugar water into the hummingbird feeder and smiled every time a “hummer” stopped by. 

Ed took his grandkids on long, arduous hikes. Despite being well into his 80s, he could outpace the “youngsters.” He taught his grandkids about different animals, including the wild turkeys that roamed Brown County and the black bears of Iron Mountain. During weekends at the cabin, he told stories about his childhood in the Upper Peninsula, remarking that Lake Superior was his and Mary’s favorite place. During road trips to Indiana’s state parks, Ed would sing John Denver’s “Take Me Home Country Roads.”

Up north, Ed booked annual 2-week slots at the Indiana Dunes campground, where he would park the Airstream for Hannah, Joey, and Tommy. He spent a lot of time with his grandsons at the Griffith Depot, watching the trains roll by and sharing stories about the area’s railroad history.

As Ed and Mary aged, trips to Brown County dwindled. In Merrillville, Eddy worked tirelessly, turning his parents’ backyard into an outdoor paradise. Ed spent almost every afternoon of his 90s out on the “island” in the swamp, planting flowers, tending the land, and sitting in his tent blind, watching the wildlife. 

Ed never met an animal whose trust he could not gain. In the early 2000s, a feral cat colony sought refuge in a makeshift shelter he created in his yard in Merrillville. The cats eventually became so comfortable around Ed that they accepted food from his hand. In 2018, his granddaughter and grandson-in-law visited with their 4-month-old kitten, who went hiding in the antique Airstream in the driveway. While Hannah and Grant feared the worst, Ed’s patience and gentle nature prevailed; soon, the baby kitten crawled out of his hiding spot and into Ed’s arms. Most recently, a neighborhood dog, Shadow, became his best friend, coming to the side door like clockwork for Ed’s food and compassion or joining him on the island for the same. 

Ed is remembered for his gentle and patient nature, kindness, creative ideas, ingenuity and innovation, and true love for the earth, for all of God’s creatures. 

In place of flowers, please honor Ed’s memory with contributions to the Humane Society of Northwest Indiana.

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