Edwin “Eddie” Spencer, Jr.
November 7, 1947
June 12, 2025
Funeral Service
Monday, June 16, 2025
2:00 PM followed by visitation
Serenity Funeral Home, Beulaville
Graveside Service
Tuesday, June 17, 2025
11:00 AM
Westview Cemetery
917 Cleveland Dr., Kinston, NC
Chinquapin, NC
Edwin “Eddie” Ferebee Spencer, Jr., age 77, died Thursday, June 12, 2025 at ECU Health Duplin Hospital in Kenansville, NC. He is preceded in death by his parents Edwin and Hazel Spencer and his former wife and first love Twila Tucker.
Mr. Spencer is survived by his longtime companion and last love Debbie Martin of Chinquapin; daughter, Paige Spencer of Raleigh, step daughter, Ashley Holmes of OR; son, Hunter Spencer of Wilmington; brother, Wallace Spencer of Dover; and three grandchildren, Savannah Spencer, Walter Holmes, and Graham Holmes.
Eddie was born in Portsmouth, Virginia and his family moved to Kinston, North Carolina in 1961; he later moved to Dover, NC in 1964. He and his brother Wallace grew up amongst aunts, uncles, and cousins, and they enjoyed all the aspects of country living. His love for rock and roll started in the 1950s, listening to such greats as Elvis, Little Richard, Dion, and more. He started dancing at the old skating rink at the Kinston airport at the age of 12—little did he know shag dancing would become one of the most favorite things in his life. He graduated from South Lenoir High School and attended Lenoir Community College to become an electrician. Eddie proudly served in the U.S. Army during the Vietnam War. In 1971, he moved to Wilmington, NC where he met and married Twila in 1973. They started their family, and Eddie was a proud father, coaching softball for Paige and teaching Hunter how to play golf.
One of the places Eddie was happiest was on the dance floor shagging to beach music. He danced in all the major clubs but the Pavilion at Atlantic Beach was one of his favorites. When he moved to Wilmington, he got involved in the shag scene there. He started going to SOS in Myrtle Beach in 1982 and didn’t miss one for 31 years. In the shag world, he was known as “Crazy Eddie” and everybody understands why. Eddie served as the Cape Fear Shag Club President and Vice President in the early 2000’s.
Eddie and Debbie met at SOS at Fat Harold’s and began their long-term relationship in August of 2002. They became engaged in December 2002, and they’ve been together ever since. Eddie was very romantic, bringing her flowers every day when they were dating and even named a star after her. In their 23 years together, they shared many happy memories, most of them on the dance floor. He was inducted into the Atlantic Beach Shaggers Hall of Fame in 2015.
Something Eddie always took great pride in was his career with General Electric in the nuclear division, which started in 1983 until he retired in 2008. He had a specialized job and was well-known for his problem-solving skills in his position at GE.
Eddie had a strong faith and enjoyed being a member of Bethlehem Original Freewill Baptist Church in Fountaintown, where he and Debbie attended services regularly. After his GE retirement, he worked part-time in maintenance at Catalyst Church in Jacksonville, NC where he did just about everything except preach the sermon. Through his entire career, Eddie made lifelong friends with everybody he met in every job that he held.
Outside of the workplace, Eddie loved the game of golf and never gave up wanting to play another round. The hunting club was another big part of his life. Come October through January the 1st, Eddie was up at early dawn and didn’t come home until late in the day, deer hunting as often as possible. This is a reflection of his passion for hunting and his love for all of his hunting buddies.
To know Eddie was to love Eddie. He lived life in vivid color, unapologetically. He always said he would continue dancing until he couldn’t dance anymore, and he did just that. Eddie is already shadow shagging with his best friends of the past.
We love you Eddie, and we know you’re throwing the ball to Rebel, our beloved dog.
