Edgar Loren Midgett

Edgar "Loren" Midgett passed away in Gainesville Florida, on October 13, 2021, a month shy of his 80th birthday. Funeral services will be held at 11:00 am on Monday, October 18, 2021 at Gainesville's Forest Meadows Funeral Home, with Reverend David Chauncey of Westside Baptist Church officiating. Interment and a family graveside service will follow the next morning in Suwannee County at Philadelphia Baptist Church in McAlpin, Florida. Loren was born in Hialeah to Clara Mae Howell Midgett and Robert Loren Midgett in 1941. A 1959 graduate of Edison High, Loren attended the University of Florida and then proudly served in the US Army/Reserves during Vietnam. His employment with the Florida Department of Transportation started with a survey crew position, and after he went back to school and obtained a bachelor's degree in engineering from Florida International University, he became a Professional Engineer, specializing in designing bridges, roads, and interstate interchanges. A proud example of his work was the massive I-95 and I-595 interchange in Ft. Lauderdale. Loren served for many years as a deacon and choir member at Sierra Norwood Baptist Church and was an avid reader. After retiring from DOT, Loren relocated to Gainesville, where he was a member of Tower Road Baptist and then Westside Baptist Church. Loren enjoyed singing in the choir and going on lunch adventures with his Sunday School class. Loren's lifelong hobby was genealogy, and he spent countless hours taking headstone rubbings in small cemeteries, reading in dusty courtroom basements, and interviewing aging relatives to capture his family history. Bored in retirement, he went back to work for Pasco County as a civil engineer for almost a decade. Loren was preceded in death by his mother, his father, his brother Garfield Midgett, and his beloved wife of 55 years, Ernestine "Beth" Midgett, who passed away in 2019. Loren is survived by his son and daughter-in-law (David and Lisa Midgett), his daughter and son-in-law (Susan and Ernie Wetherbee), two younger sisters (Clarice Schattle and Kathy McKenzie), many cousins, nieces, and nephews, 5 grandchildren and 1 great-grandchild. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to Florida Baptist Children's Homes, PO Box 8190 Lakeland FL 33802. Arrangements under the care of Forest Meadows Funeral Home, 725 NW 23rd Ave, Gainesville, FL, 32609 352-378-2528.

Edgar Loren Midgett

October 15, 2021