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Gluck -- Edward Samuel Gluck was born on August 21, 1917 in New York City and died on February 22, 2001 in Albuquerque, New Mexico. He had been recovering from a surgery since early in December. Ed visited New Mexico many times during the years but made Albuquerque his home only in July of 2000. Ed was born the fifth of six children. His father was a Hungarian immigrant and his mother was the daughter of the sheriff of a small rural county in Virginia. For many years, the family lived on the upper west side of N.Y. and worked as waiters and cooks in the large midtown hotels (his aunt Fanny claimed that she invented the"Waldorf Salad"). This situation resulted in the tradition of a family of very modest means enjoying large sumptuous dinners late at night as the leftovers were brought home after work. As expected, Ed developed a taste for fine food and kept the family tradition going by introducing his nieces, nephews and friends to the delights. Other than for this extravagance, Ed traveled light and simply. Beginning around 1940 Ed spent many years as a merchant seaman where he worked as an oiler and then as an engineer. He spoke little about his WW ll experiences other than for an occasional oblique reference to dangerous north Atlantic crossings and the carnage of Guadelcanal. His life on the sea encouraged his fascination with the world and its people. He was always well read, up to date and interested. He ended his work life as a maintenance engineer and staunch union man for the NYC sanitation department. Unfortunately, after the WWII his body began to fail him and he developed an extremely painful and progressive arthritic condition. For the rest of his life he confronted the debilitation and refused to the end to allow it to dominate him. Instead, he exercised and walked everywhere he could. On his earlier visits to New Mexico he repeatedly and happily urged his body up the demanding La Luz trail in the Sandia Mountains. Ed was truly a New Yorker and mixed himself with the street life of the city. His friends were artists, loan sharks, cooks, stone-masons, bar tenders and some of the homeless men who lived near his apartment. Ed was a caretaker. He cared attentively to his elderly mother, chronically ill brother and sister, and any infirmed friend who could do with a little conversation. Although he never married he loved children and was fascinated by infants. He gave generously to charities especially having to do with the protection of the environment, wild life and animals. He is survived by his nieces and nephews in New York, Michael, Bruce, Charles, Caroline, Peter, Paul and Amy; and his New Mexico Family, Charlene, Katie, Jay, Craig, John, and his dear friend Marian. We all wanted him to be close by and to stay a while.
        Published on: Sun March 18, 2001