U.S. Marine Corps veteran Edwin “Ed” Daley is not one to sit still.
He and his wife of 53 years, Karen, “retired” to Warren County several years ago to be closer to their two daughters and their grandchildren. However, Daley has served as the interim county administrator for Warren County for nearly four years, and has served on the Laurel Ridge College Board for much of that time.
Daley, who also is on the college’s Educational Foundation Board, grew up in the Pittsburgh area, and tried to join the Marine Corps right after his high school graduation.
“I couldn’t convince my mother to sign my paper since I was 17,” he said. “So, I decided to go ahead and go to college for two years.”
Daley attended Slippery Rock University in Pennsylvania, but before he was through getting his degree, he returned to the recruiting office, enlisting in 1969.
“Probably waiting the two years dramatically changed my experience because if I had gone in ’66, I probably would have been going from bootcamp and infantry training to Vietnam,” said Daley, saying there was a U.S. troop build up between 1966 and 1968. “Instead, they sent me to journalism school.”
Although he requested to be sent to Vietnam, that request was denied. But, he was able to be stationed at Quantico, which was near where Karen – the couple was engaged at the time – was attending college. He became the editor of the base newspaper, the Quantico Sentry, and a press chief.
Daley was then sent to Russian language school in Monterey, Calif., and later to Arizona and then to Camp Lejeune, N.C., to serve with a Russian intelligence unit. He also received training in human relations and in computers.
After serving four years, Daley left the military and returned to Slippery Rock, where he earned a bachelor’s degree in political science. He had hoped to become a teacher, but jobs were scarce the winter he graduated, and he ended up working for Lawrence Co., Penn.
Daley attained a master’s degree in public administration from the University of Pittsburgh and embarked on a public service career as a city manager, which took him to various locations. He served his longest tenure in Winchester, where he was city manager from 1986-2007. During those years, he occasionally took classes at Laurel Ridge “to keep myself fresh.”
He earned his Ph.D in public administration through the University of Southern California, which offered weekend classes once a month in Washington, D.C. Daley also had several teaching positions throughout his career, including leading government and public finance classes at Laurel Ridge. During his time with Winchester, the college partnered with the city to offer programs for employees.
“Serving on the College Board gives me a chance to give back,” he said. “The college offers opportunities for everyone.
In addition to his duties with the College Board and with Warren County, Daley teaches online classes for Regent University.
Laurel Ridge Community College was known as Lord Fairfax Community College until June 2022. For consistency purposes, the college will be referenced as Laurel Ridge going forward.