Obituary of Edmund J. Hoffmann

Edmund J. Ted Hoffmann Jr., 77 of Cortland, passed away surrounded by family June 13, 2009 at the University Hospital in Syracuse. Mr. Hoffmann was born March 5, 1932 in Syracuse the son of the late Edmund J. and Gladys Hastings Hoffmann Sr. Ted grew up in Cortland and graduated from St. Marys School in 1950. He continued his education at the University of Toronto receiving his degree in 1954 before serving with the US Army during the Korean Conflict. After his military service he attended St. Johns University College of Law were he received his law degree, and was admitted to practice in the courts of New York State and in US District Court in 1959. In June 2001, Ted was admitted to the United States Supreme Court in a special ceremony in Washington, DC. During his 50 years of practicing law he has served many community members and local businesses as well as serving as City Prosecutor for a 6-year term and as City Attorney for a 6-year term, Corporation Counsel for the City of Cortland and attorney for the Cortland Housing Authority. He was grateful to have been awarded by the Trial Lawyers Assoc of America for volunteering his time and legal services to victims and their families of the 9/11 attack. Ted had served the community in many ways as an Attorney, he had also served on several local boards throughout his life, including the YMCA and the Syracuse Symphony most recently. He was a communicant of St. Marys Church in Cortland. Ted was a friend to many and a true family man, spending a great deal of time with his family. He enjoyed skiing, golfing, hiking and was an avid tennis player, especially enjoyed playing with friends and family at the family tennis court. Mr. Hoffmann is survived by his son Dana (Judy) Hoffmann of Cortland. Three sisters Joan Hickey in Minnesota, Margaret (Russ) House in Arizona and Kathy (David) Walsh of Binghamton, NY. His beloved grandchildren; Michael, Brian, Bennett and Lauren. Several nieces, nephews and cousins. Mr. Hoffmann was predeceased by his wife Linda D. Hoffmann in 1999 and daughter Deborah L. Hoffmann in 1987. A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated on Thursday at 11:00 AM at St. Mary's Church, Cortland. Interment in Cortland Rural Cemetery will be private. There are no calling hours. In lieu of flowers those wishing to honor Ted's memory are asked to consider the Golisano Children's Hospital, 750 E. Adams St., Syracuse, NY 13210. To offer condolences online, visit www.Wright-Beard.com. It was sad news, indeed, to read of the death of Ted Hoffmann. He was a kind, generous, and caring gentleman and will be missed by the entire community. I worked with Ted on the YMCA Board of Directors, and when I chaired that body, he was on the YM Board of Trustees and it was my pleasure to interact with him in that capacity. I learned much from Ted just watching him function on the Boards and on committees. He had a cool head, never lost his temper, and always seemed to find the solution to every problem. I send my deepest condolences to you, his family. Your father was a unique human being. I will miss greeting him at the Community and enjoying his ready smile. From Donna Anderson I am so sorry to hear about your loss. Ted was a great man a a good friend to many. I thank you for giving me the opportunity to help him out and expecially, getting to know him. He will be sadly missed. From Brenda Dewey Our sympathy, Carl and Olga Savino Dana, Judy, and family: my sincerest sympathy to all of you! Your father, grandfather, brother, uncle, and friend was a truly wonderful person to myself and my family! I appreciated his true integrity, sincerity, passion for all the sports he was active in,especially the skiing! ...also his passion and love for Mrs. Hoffman was certainly evident from near and far! This clearly continued on with the arrival of his grandchildren and Judy! Just the friendliest smile ever and he was also so pleasant a person every time you saw him, most recently at the Community Restaurant. I was honored to have him at my wedding, along with Mr. Shay, especially since my own father has been gone for so many years. I looked at him and Mr. Shay as my surrogate fathers. It really meant a ton to me. Thank you God for sharing him with so many of us! May all his good will be the example and continue to live on through his heirs and friends! My thoughts are with you Dana, Judy, Michael, Bryan, Bennett, and Lauren during this difficult time. Celebrating his life will keep smiles on many of our faces for a long time! Julie My Condolences to the Hoffman family and staff over the last 25 years or so i new i was more than just a client of Teds we always looked forward to the visits that came with the bussiness at hand, and I felt luckey to have been his friend,generly with instant expert advise, i will miss those visits,as will many i'm sure.Again my sincere condolences,john pitman Dana and Judy, I can't tell you how saddened I am at Ted's passing, and I can't even begin to imagine what a void this leaves in your lives. I certainly don't have to tell you what a gem Ted was, as a professional and as a friend. He is the last of the breed of attorneys who recognized that their integrity was their stock in trade and who truly believed that part of their professional obligation included giving. Ted loved to tell about his father administering the assigned counsel program for years for no remuneration. And the rest of us will be telling Ted Hoffmann stories for years. Don't you just picture Ted now happily reunited with his beloved Linda and Debbie? You and your family are in my thoughts and prayers. Sincerely, Mary Beth Sally and I want to express our deep sympathy to Dana and the rest of the family on their loss of their father and my good ski and tennis buddy, Ted. Har We were very sorry to read of Ted's death. Ray and Pat Malbone Dear Dana, Ted was a good friend, good neighbor and many times my helpful attorney. He was one of the kindest persons I have ever known. He will be missed. He will live on through all the lives he has touched. We are truly fortunate he was with us. Jim Yaman Dear Dana, Ted was a good friend, good neighbor and many times my helpful attorney. He was one of the kindest persons I have ever known. He will be missed. He will live on through all the lives he has touched. We are truly fortunate he was with us. Jim Yaman Dear Dana, Ted was a good friend, good neighbor and many times my helpful attorney. He was one of the kindest persons I have ever known. He will be missed. He will live on through all the lives he has touched. We are truly fortunate he was with us. Jim Yaman We are deeply saddened to hear of Ted's passing. Our thought's and prayers and with you. From Edward Feiman To Ted's family & friends. I had the privledge of knowing Ted for only the past few years. He was such a REAL person. I am just a clerk but he always treated me as if I were special and important. I enjoyed talking to him, especially when we were comparing "notes" on grandchildren. The world was a much better place while he lived, worked, and played among us. He has touched so many lives & he will be missed beyond words. My thoughts and prayers go out to his family and friends during this difficult time. Hugs, Rita DANA AND FAMILY, I JUST LEARNED OF YOUR FATHER'S PASSING TODAY. I AM SO VERY SORRY. HE WAS A GREAT MAN AND ALWAYS A PLEASURE TO SPEAK TO AND WORK FOR. I WILL GREATLY MISS HIM. From David Brown Dana and Family.... My parents just read and sadly told me that Ted passed away last week. We are so very sad for your loss, and this loss to Cortland County. I'm sure Ted was a wonderful grandpa to the kids! On a very personal note, this touches me deeply, as I have so many great memories of your family, laughing, joking, teasing, visiting on Circle Drive & MacGregor. You must know that I still miss Debbie a lot, and think of her often! Warmly, Debby Poskanzer Our deepest sympathy to you Dana and your family. We truly loved both your Mom and Dad. They adored you, Debbie and your Children. We enjoyed pictures of you all when we visited summers in Cortland. Our best love to you all, Lydia and Doug I was saddened to read of Ted's passing. He was all that a lawyer should be. He was knowledgeable, a persistent advocate, compassionate, and the consummate professional in every aspect of my contact with him. My first criminal trial as an Assistant District Attorney was against Ted in the Town of Pitcher. One of my last contacts was when he accepted my request to represent a defendant in a homicide case in Chenango County. He did a great job from first to last. The legal profession will miss him. I will miss him. My sincere condolences to the family.---howie sullivan, Acting Supreme Court Justice. I was really sad to learn of Ted's death. I had a great visit with him last summer on a visit to Cortland from North Carolina. I met him in his office and was so pleased to see that he really liked his 'job', but had time to enjoy other things in life. We talked about all the good times on the tennis court with Hal and Jim. Traveling to Syracuse in the winter weather and then coming back to the Hollywood for dinner at 9 pm. Of course, there were those wonderful Saturdays when we 4 played in the 'sandpit' at his parent's place. I still have a broken twisted finger to prove how hard Ted hit the ball. I made the mistake of trying to catch one that was going to get lost in the bushy fence. Even George Mauler could not fix it on Monday. I have truly fond memories of Ted and mourn his loss with you, Dana and Judy. I am sorry that I could not attend his Mass, but my thoughts are with you. I will always feel a special bond with you and your family, because of the wonderful times we had with your mother and father and with you and Judy, especially at the water's edge at the baptism of your son. Much love, Selby Ted was a very good man and a trusted friend. I will miss him very much as I miss Linda. He was so joyful, even about lawyer jokes and he was kind and compassionate to all. Dottie Gration Dear Dana and Judy, I am so very sorry about Ted. He was truly one of the finest people I have ever known. He made a wonderful impact on everyone he met, with his great kindness, caring nature, and the special smile he had for you. He will be missed by so many people. Please accept my heartfelt condolences for your tremendous loss. Christina DiGiusto