Edward Donald MacMillan

Edward Donald MacMillan passed away January 19, 2021, at Northwestern Medicine Kishwaukee Hospital as a result of complications from COVID-19. He was 83 years old.

He was preceded in death by his father, John Angus "Jack" MacMillan, and his mother, Marie Florida, as well as his brother Raymond, sister Louise, and nephew Mark Ampleford. He is survived by his former wife and lifelong friend Christine Rust; two children, Erin Quinn (husband Andrew and children Hadley and Brayden) and Andrew MacMillan (wife Jennifer and children Taylor and A.J.); two sisters, Patricia (husband Stan Anderson) and Maureen (husband Rick Ampleford); one brother, Brian MacMillan; four nieces, Tracy MacMillan, Dawn Sibley (Anderson), Hallie Graziano (Anderson), and Leslie Giroux (Ampleford); and one nephew, Robin Anderson.

Edward was born in Timmins, Ontario, Canada, the eldest son of a gold miner. True to his Canadian roots, he grew up playing hockey and liked to joke that he learned to skate before he learned to walk. Upon the death of his father in 1951, he and his mother and siblings emigrated to the United States where he attended and graduated from Mooseheart High School in Batavia, Illinois, at the time a home and school for the widow and children of deceased male members of the Loyal Order of the Moose. He then served in the United States Air Force, during which he became a U.S. citizen. After an honorable discharge from the military, he was recruited to use the skills he acquired during service relating to calibration, navigation, and the Bureau of Standards to work at Vandenberg Air Force Base, where he helped quietly begin laying the groundwork to put a man on the moon, as the endeavor had not yet been made public. During the Apollo 11 mission, Ed participated in the monitoring and tracking of the flight from the USNS Redstone , a seagoing tracking and communications station. He was proud of his contribution to this historical achievement in our nation's history. Ed transitioned to the corporate world in the early 1970s, working in the accounting field through his retirement in the 1990s.

To know Ed was to love him. He was easy going, pragmatic, and quick with a joke. He was an avid sports fan, faithfully attended every game or match his children ever played, including as coach of his son's little league baseball teams, and was unwaveringly loyal to the Montreal Canadiens. He never lost a game of Trivial Pursuit, never drank a Coke when he could have a Pepsi, and never answered the question, "How are you?" other than by saying, "Lemme check." His wise words and deep chuckle will ring in our ears and remain in our hearts always.

A memorial will be scheduled at a later date, when it is safer to gather in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. In lieu of flowers, donations to Mooseheart Child City & School in his memory as a graduate of the class of 1956 are appreciated.