Edward Joseph von der Lippe

Edward Joseph von der Lippe of Oak Ridge, NC, passed away on Saturday, June 17, 2017, after a long battle with Parkinson’s Disease. Ed was born in Newark, NJ on January 24, 1934 to the late John Clifford and Josephine Sixt von der Lippe. Ed enlisted in the US Army during the Korean War and was a specialist attached to the Air Force on Guam. He graduated from Fairleigh Dickinson University with degrees in biology and psychology and was selected for a joint program with Cambridge University to participate in an archeological dig of a Phoenician site in Sicily. Ed was the director of the children’s portion of the Newark Museum, where he had a staff of 100. In 1966 in moved to Greensboro to become the President/CEO of what is now known as the Greensboro Science Center. The lure of Greensboro was the chance to build a museum. While the Greensboro Junior Museum had a small budget and a staff of only one, Ed was fueled by his passion for all facets of educating young people. He developed a vision for a great museum that was contagious, and that led to rapid growth of the center. During his tenure, the museum added over 10,000 artifacts that developed the museum’s world class collections. He also added a zoo and a planetarium. He was particularly focused on the paleontology, geology and shell collections as well as anything to do with herpetology. Ed was also responsible for creating a museum internship program with the local universities. One of his great joys was the annual trip he made, with his family, to Emerald Isle to collect marine life for the museum’s salt water touch tanks. Over the 37 years at the Museum, Ed received numerous prestigious awards for his work within the museum field, however, his proudest accomplishment was getting the museum accredited. Ed was a lifelong advocate of the Boy Scouts. As a Boy Scout, he attended the 7th World Scout Jamboree (1951) in Austria. He later served as an Assistant Scout Master to Greensboro Troop 230 (Irving Park United Methodist Church) and merit badge counselor. While his passion for the museum was always visible, his devotion was to his family. He and Hannelore Eckhardt were married for 53 years. In addition to his wife, he is survived by his three sons, Kevin (Laura) of Oak Ridge, Douglas (Chris) and their children Gabrielle and Grayson of Greensboro and Bruce (Darren) and their children Gabriel and Virginia of Greensboro. The family would like to thank Dr. C. Keith Willis for his exceptional care over the many years. We also would like to thank the private care givers, and Hospice of the Piedmont for their wonderful care provided. A memorial service will be held at Wesley Memorial United Methodist Church at 1225 Chestnut Drive, High Point, NC, on Saturday, June 24, 2017 at 11 am, visitiation afterward. In lieu of flowers, please donate to the Greensboro Science Center, 4301 Lawndale Drive, Greensboro, 27455.