Passing of Former ISC President Ed Kirner

Blair Setford • November 28, 2023

Ed Kirner 1931 - 2023

The ISC is saddened by the passing of former president and Hall of Fame Administrator Ed Kirner, who passed away on November 24, 2023.


Ed Kirner was a giant in fastpitch circles in Aurora, IL - one of the game's biggest hotbeds - in the 1960s, 70s and 80s.


He played a large role in breaking down the barriers between ASA and ISC teams which divided the game. In 1980, the Aurora Home Savings and Loan team, due to the efforts of Carrol Forbes, Ed Kirner and Chuck Lockinger,  entered the ISC World Tournament. They became the first ASA team to do so, opening the door for today's modern game in which nearly all teams play in both the ISC and ASA.


Ed started in fastpitch in 1951. While health issues cut short his playing career, over the years he's served in many, many roles, including 31 years with the ISC as Illinois Regional Commissioner and ultimately as ISC President from 1982 - 1993, the longest tenure in the organization at the time. He retired from the ISC in 2011.


Just some of his other service in the game included:

  • Secretary of the Aurora City League for seven years; 
  • Associated with Hartman’s Supermarket team through eight city championship seasons; 
  • Publicity/Public Relations Director for the Aurora Home Savings and Loan team beginning in 1973; 
  • Publisher/Editor for 15 years of Grand Slam Fastpitch, a newspaper dedicated to men’s fastpitch - each year spending three months selling ads, writing stories, and soliciting articles from teams across the U.S. and Canada - with all profits going to help finance the Aurora team; 
  • Raised more than $9,500 to help weather a financial storm for Ray Anderson and his Fastpitch Softball News Bulletin; 
  • Developed the concept of a team “Yearbook” in 1981; writing all the contents, selling the ads, did the layouts and paste-ups and sold the books to finance the Aurora team’s trip to Japan for that year’s Friendship Series.


Ed was honored in 1992 by the Aurora Men’s Fastpitch Association as “Man of the Year” and was cited “for Outstanding Contribution to Fastpitch Softball” - certainly an award richly deserved.


Editor's note: With his printer's background, Ed was also involved with the ISC Guide and I fondly recall him encouraging me to get more involved with the Guide in the mid-2000s as his time was winding down.


More recently, Ed and his lovely wife Carole have lived in Montgomery, IL, enjoying life one day at a time. For Ed's full Hall of Fame bio, please click here.

Jon Gwizdala: Returning to Form and Leading the Next Generation

By Brian Eradus • May 23, 2025
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By Brian Eradus • May 20, 2025
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