Granville – Edward Albert Jensen, Jr., 91, (1925-2017) passed away on Thursday, June 1st. Ed was born August 7, 1925 in Westfield to the late Edward A. and Anna (Olsen) Jensen Sr. Ed grew up and spent his entire life on the family farm in Granville. As a boy, he grew celery and other vegetables in a peat bog with his brothers,selling them to neighbors using a pull wagon. At that time, his father was planting apple trees on some property he had purchased, along the side of Bad Luck Mountain, which became the farm known today as Mountain Orchard. Here Ed cultivated a love of farming while honing his skills in agriculture.
He was drafted into the United States Navy in 1943 at the age of 18, and served as a Motor Machinist Mate Second Class on a LCT 730 landing craft in the Philippines during World War II. Returning home in 1946, Ed worked in construction before becoming a partner with his father in the family farm. Under his management, the farm grew to almost 100 acres, supplying apples throughout the Pioneer Valley.
Ed met Anne Sussmannin 1956 at a Granville square dance,eventually marrying on October 5, 1957. They were blessed with five children, who helped around the farm throughout their childhoods.
Ed became director of the Hampden County Farm Bureau, also serving as a member of the Massachusetts Fruit Growers Association, where he became President for a term. In the 1970s, he also began his service as Assessor for the town of Granville, where he served for25 years.
At age 91, he was still working on Mountain Orchard, growing peaches, nectarines, and pears in addition to over 20 varieties of apples. He was a quiet man, with an understated sense of humor, who worked to the end to maintain and improve the farm for the next generation.
Ed is survived by his beloved wife of 59 years Anne S. Jensen (Sussmann) of Granville. He was the loving father to Karen A. Kechkaylo and her husband Timothy of Delphi, IN; Eric J. Jensen and his wife Tracy of Liverpool, NY; Christina J. Teter of Granville; Kevin E. Jensen of Simpsonville, SC; and Robert P. Jensen and his wife Sarah of Belmont, MA. He was the caring brother to James Jensen of Granville and cherished grandfather to 20 grandchildren. Ed was predeceased by his brothers Christian Jensen and Ernest Jensen and his son-in-law William Teter. A Memorial Service will be held June 3, 2017 at 11 am at the Granville Federated Church (16 Granby Road, Granville, MA 01034), with a reception to follow at the Old Meeting House in Granville. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made in Ed’s memory to the Granville Historical Society (707 Main Rd. Granville, MA 01034). Avalon Life Celebration Center has been entrusted with the final arrangements.
