Edwin Lynch

Edwin W. Lynch, 91, retired real estate developer, former member of the Virginia House of Delegates, and one of George Mason University’s longest-standing and generous benefactors, died Wednesday, March 17 2004, following an extended illness. Born in Annandale, Va., Lynch was a graduate of Strayer College of Accounting and Business Administration. After serving with the U.S. Department of Agriculture from 1933 to 1937, he worked as a real estate broker from 1937 to 1972, as an accountant and real estate developer for Vernon Lynch, his father’s firm, from 1938 to 1945, and as a manager and partner for Vernon Lynch and Sons from 1945 to 1975. Following that, he served as a general partner in the Lynch Limited Partnership. In 1987, he and his wife endowed Institute for Conflict Analysis and Resolution’s (ICAR) ’s first chair and an annual lecture series in memory of his parents, Vernon and Minnie. The following year, his influence played a major role in helping to establish the institute’s doctoral program–the first of its kind in the world. In 1996, the Lynches created the John W. Burton Endowment, named for one of ICAR’s distinguished professors. Throughout his career, Lynch held a number of elected and appointed offices, serving as a member of the Virginia House of Delegates, the First American Bank of Virginia’s Board of Directors, the Patrick Henry Memorial Foundation’s Board of Trustees, and the Shenandoah College and Conservatory of Music’s Board of Trustees.