Thetford Center, VT — Allen 'Ed' Eastridge, 73, died peacefully at his home surrounded by family on Monday night, August 28, 2023, after a courageous battle with cancer, and a lifetime of incredible stories.

Ed was born October 31, 1949, to William and Virginia (Seitzinger) Eastridge. He grew up in Edgewater, Maryland, and started his music career before he finished school. In 1974, Ed married Rita Hannah, whom he remained close friends with after their divorce. Ed married Diana 'Dixie' Ballin in 1983 after meeting backstage at a concert. Together they started Big Mo Records, through which Ed and Dixie published their own music alongside legends such as Danny Gatton. Ed worked with hundreds of the world's premier artists including Bonnie Raite, Sheryl Crowe, Emmylou Harris, Wynton Marsalis, Diana Krull, Richard Thompson, Vince Gill, Linda Ronstadt and many others. In 1993, they relocated to the hills of Vermont to be closer to family. They raised three children, Emily, Chico, and Justin.

Ed, although humble, was an astonishingly talented musician, teacher, audio engineer, and carpenter, as well as an accomplished visual artist. He will be fondly remembered by the countless lives he touched through music and kindness. In his adulthood, he took up drawing and painting portraits, which earned him an exhibit at the Main Street Museum earlier this year.

He leaves behind his wife, Dixie, his brother Bill, his daughter, Emily, his sons, Chico and Justin, his grandsons, Saxon and Lincoln Galenski, and his beloved Kubota tractor. A celebration concert, which has been unilaterally dubbed the Ed Eastridge Star-Studded End of Life Variety Showcase Spectacular, will be held on Friday, September 8th from 6:00-9:00pm at the Briggs Opera House in White River Junction.

Knight Funeral Home has been entrusted with arrangements. Condolences may be expressed in an online guestbook found at www.knightfuneralhomes.com