Edward J. White, 76, insurance company official and devoted family man. [Philadelphia Daily News]

April 25--WHEN ED WHITE'S family would drive past Northeast Catholic High School for Boys on Torresdale Avenue, they could easily envision a halo around the building.

The image came to mind because of the near-holy reverence Ed had for his alma mater.

What was it about that school that Ed White held in such deference? A quiet man of few words, Ed might have had trouble putting his feelings into words, but his family attributed it to the gratitude he had for the education he received there, and his deep respect for the Oblates of St. Francis de Sales who run it.

Whatever it was, Ed continued to serve the school long after he graduated in 1955. He served two terms as president of the Alumni Association, which installed him in its Hall of Fame with appropriate ceremony on March 4, 2008.

Edward J. White, who spent 37 years in the insurance business, died Tuesday. He was 76 and lived in Northeast Philadelphia. He was an active member of the Knights of Columbus and the Catholic War Veterans, a former member of the Army National Guard and a devoted family man.

Ed was a proud Irishman and managed to visit the country once.

"He was 100 percent Irish," said his daughter Colleen Poole. "He was quiet, selfless and humble, devoted to his family. He was a simple man who didn't need much. What you saw was what you got."

Ed was born in Philadelphia to Samuel and Helen White. He attended St. Boniface parochial school before going to North Catholic.

In 1961, he joined the Calvert Fire and Insurance Co. as an auto-claims adjuster. After several years, he moved to State Farm, from which he retired in 1998 as property-damage-claims superintendent.

He served two terms as president of the Northeast Catholic High School Alumni Association, from 2000 to 2003 and from 2006 to 2009.

Ed looked forward to spending Thanksgiving with his family at Ocean City, N.J., each year. He and his wife, the former Patricia Frydlewicz, also visited Alaska.

He and Patricia, a graduate of Little Flower Catholic High School for Girls, were married in 1965.

Besides his wife and daughter, he is survived by two other daughters, Terry Long and Patricia Malitsky; a son, Edward; a sister, Dolores Meredith, and nine grandchildren.

Services: Funeral Mass 10 a.m. Monday at St. Katherine of Siena Church, Frankford Avenue and Primrose Road. Friends may call at 7 p.m. Sunday at the Burns Funeral Home, 9708 Frankford Ave., and at 8:30 a.m. Monday at the funeral home. Burial will be in Our Lady of Grace Cemetery, Langhorne.

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