INDUCTION YEAR: 2024
Edward Arthur is a life-long Alexandrian. He remembers playing whiffle ball with his buddies Marty and Billy when he was about six years-old back on E. Myrtle Street. “They are still around.” Later when he was about 13 years old Arthur walked around Arlandria, now called Chirilagua, with his father handing out turkeys and used toys to the low-income residents who lived there. He says the experience taught him how important and satisfying it was to give back to the community in meaningful ways. It also exposed him to the struggles many in the community were dealing with. These experiences inspired him to make it a mission throughout his life to support and care for the less fortunate among us. His story has now come full circle as he once again serves the same neighborhood with the same energy and passion he did as a boy.
After graduating in 1968 he attended Campbell College in North Carolina and then returned to Alexandria and got a job as a salesman. Although Arthur worked as a salesman all of his career he says, “My biggest sales success in 1974, and still today, was talking my wife Kathy into marrying me.” He says it took some doing and Kathy explains, “He just wouldn’t give up.” He says, “We have been married for 50 years and any bit of success I’ve had has her fingerprints all over it.”
Arthur started working for Safeware, a startup company in 1984, which sold safety Personal Protective Equipment (PPE). He stayed there 35 years. “I had the idea of making a positive impact every day.”
As he worked his way up to VP for sales and marketing, he traveled the country interacting with people from all walks of life and professions large and small. He realized early on how grateful people are to receive a kind word and measure of gratitude for who they are and what they contribute no matter their station in life. After retiring, he brought everything back to where it started. “When mom died in 2019, I said to my sisters, ‘let’s tell people not to send flowers; let’s start a fund to honor our parents and the love, patience, generosity and compassion they had for all people.’”
Arthur recalls he had no idea how to do this but with the help of his church, Grace Episcopal, and a few good friends including John Porter, David Baker, Cathy David, Allison Silverberg and Pat Miller, he was able to set up the Kathleen & Eddie Arthur Hearts of Love Foundation. Recently he has been able to transfer the operation of his fund to ACT.
“The fund is committed to providing financial assistance and support to low-income families most of whom live in the Chirilagua area of Alexandria. We work to enable low-income youth to access the same opportunities that are are afforded to their peers of higher socio-economic standing. We also support women in abusive relationships by providing aid and direction that helps them, and their children, live safe, secure and abuse free environments.
Each year the Hearts of Love Foundation funds 3-5 projects to assist people in need. They meet every month to decide which projects to fund. There are always more needs than there are funds available. As of the summer of 2024 the fund has dispersed $242,000 to local organizations and initiatives including the donation of a playground to the Domestic Violence Safe House. Arthur says 67 percent of the women there go back to their abuser so, “We developed a program for a transition once they leave the Safe House, so they are protected as they work towards obtaining full citizenship status.”
This year one project receiving support is John Porter’s Educational Opportunity for Alexandrians Scholarships (EOA). Arthur says the $5,000 presented to an undocumented youth will pay for two years of higher education at Northern Virginia Community College. Among the many projects that have received assistance are the Grace Episcopal Church food bank, Together We Bake, and the National Breast Cancer Foundation to provide free breast care for those who cannot afford it. The fund also assisted the Christ Church Lazarus Emergency Financial Assistance initiative that provides financial assistance to new immigrants for basic furniture needs, car repairs, clothing, dental services and security deposits.
In nominating Arthur as a Living Legend, former Alexandria Chief of Police David Baker said, “Community members frequently point directly to Eddie and Kathleen as role models who inspire them to make a difference, volunteer, and stay involved. Residents are grateful when they see Eddie walking the neighborhoods, talking to families, and listening to their needs. His empathy, love of others, commitment to community, consciousness of giving, and kindness of heart are deeply ingrained within him. What is so very special is how he makes people feel and how often – so very often – he and the mission that drives him touches the lives of real people in meaningful and personal ways. Lives have been changed for the better over the years because of him and the foundation he created.”
Arthur says the biggest challenge to helping the residents, particularly the immigrant community, is making sure they are encouraged and accepted, and continue to have strong public and private advocates who are committed to providing needed resources, information, and outreach services of all kinds.
Since Arthur’s recent stroke he has had to cut back but, “I remain determined not to let up on the gas pedal. We only have so much money and it breaks my heart to tell people we can’t help you now.” There is always something good that can be done for others and as long as he is able, Ed Arthur will be there to help.
By Shirley Ruhe
Photo Credit: Steven Halperson/Tisara Photo