(WSVN) - WSVN is mourning the loss of our leader, Mr. Ed Ansin, and Wednesday night, the mainstay in the South Florida community was remembered by those closest to him in a service full of fond memories.
Two and a half hours of laughter, tears, gratitude and memories, technology brought people together to say goodbye.
A long life well-lived.
From Edmund Ansin’s older brother Ron confirming family lore after a family member said, “I want to put one thing, one final thing to bed. It’s a rumor that has been going around. Did you or did you not bounce a book off of your brother’s head when you were kids walking to the library?”
“I did. I did, I did, I did, guilty as charged,” Ron Ansin admitted.
To a friend of 60 years who watched the Ansin children grow up and all attend college near her in Rhode Island.
“First Andy, then James, then Stephanie all came to Brown University, and that was fun,” Aunt Marg Edwards said. “Ed trusted us with the kids.”
Judaism’s traditional seven-day mourning period of sitting Shiva forced to adapt in this age of social distancing.
Family and friends from near and far took the opportunity to gather virtually to remember the owner of WSVN.
James Ansin said his father wouldn’t miss the chance to promote the station’s storm coverage.
“My Dad would be so pleased that all of you are joining the Sunbeam/Ansin family tonight, and if he were here this evening, he would be asking me to please check on the cone on your phone to discuss the trouble in the tropics,” he said.
Andy Ansin said his father was the living embodiment of the family legacy.
“It represents what we, as Ansins, have stood for since we emigrated from Russia to the United States: independence, hard work, determination and caring for others less fortunate,” he said. “It is part of our DNA to be our own bosses and to have the ability to be innovative and to control our own destinies.”
Mr. Ansin’s philanthropy was remembered as generous while he oftentimes avoided recognition for it.
“He said, ‘I view it as my duty. I learned it from my father, and it’s my pleasure to do it.’ I don’t know, that’s extraordinary to me,” Jacob Solomon, the CEO of the Greater Miami Jewish Foundation, said.
“It was Ed’s silent challenge — and I repeat, silent challenge — that lifted the largest affordable home ownership community in Broward County,” Nancy Robin, the CEO of Habitat for Humanity of Broward County, said.
“Your love of TV and all the business that you built and the success that you have had, all of that has led to your philanthropy, your legacy and how many lives you have changed,” Kathleen Cannon, the CEO of the United Way of Miami, said.
Daughter Stephanie Ansin shared a story of how her father made an investment as an 18-year-old at Harvard, held on to it and watched it grow over decades.
She said it serves as the perfect symbol for how he cherished and held tightly to all those he adored in life.
“Love, love is everything, and I know from the twinkle in your eye and how you liked to squeeze my kneecap that even though you didn’t speak much about it, you felt it, you held it close and you let it grow,” she said.
The family was also gratified to get a letter of condolences from Rupert and Lachlan Murdoch, the father and son behind Fox News.
It reads in part:
“Ed was simply an inspiration to so many who felt his impact far beyond the business world, with philanthropic devotion that touched his communities in Florida and Massachusetts in lasting ways. Like so many others, we will miss him.”
If you would like to send your condolences or share a memory with the family, click here.
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