Ed Jones pictured third from left at Demon Relays. Photo courtesy of Steve Roth.

A lifelong Washington Demons fan will be missing from the sidelines this fall.

A group of community members hope to keep the memory of Ed “Fast Eddie” Jones alive at the Washington Track and Football Field with memorial benches. A GoFundMe campaign has been started to collect donations for two memorial benches to be made in honor of Jones, who died on July 11th.

With his clipboard and charisma, Jones frequently attended Demon sporting events. Washington Boys Track Coach Steve Roth recalls a selfless act Jones made at a basketball game, “It was a Saturday night or Friday night game when we were playing in the old gymnasium. This was the old middle school and there was a bat loose in there and it was just flying around. Eddie took right after it he grabbed it with his hands and got bit two or three times, and had to go to the doctor and get rabies shots and all that but he was a lifesaver. He got the bat out of there and everybody was cheering [for] him and that was a pretty cool night for Eddie.”

Besides supporting Washington Athletics, Jones attended Camp REECE, played the guitar and organ and enjoyed helping others. The fundraising goal is $5,000 for the memorial benches, and any remaining funds will be given to Jones’ family. To donate click here.