City of Oaks Funeral Home & Cremation
Obituary
Ed Remen
Apex, North Carolina
Age 79.
Died 06/16/2025.
Ed was born to Samuel Remen and Sylvia Remen (Krouss) on August 11, 1945, in the Bronx, NY. Growing up in the Bronx, he developed a love of sports and spent much of his time playing stickball with neighborhood friends. He attended DeWitt Clinton High School, an all-boys school with over 10,000 students, where he played on the football team. As a teenager, Ed also worked at Yankee Stadium, selling concessions while getting to watch some of his favorite players.
With his love of sports and passion for teaching, Ed went on to attend Springfield College in Massachusetts, where he majored in Physical Education and graduated in 1967. He then earned a Master’s Degree in Physical Education from Indiana University in 1968, where he also played on the men’s volleyball team.
After graduating from Indiana, Ed moved to Northern Virginia, just outside of Washington, D.C., and began teaching Physical Education classes at Northern Virginia Community College (NVCC). It was there that Ed developed a deep love of racquet sports, especially tennis and racquetball. He taught at NVCC until 1977, when he opened Capitol Courts Club in Sterling, VA. During this time, Ed dedicated countless hours to racquetball, going on to win more than 40 national singles and doubles titles over the coming decades. He was inducted into the National Racquetball Hall of Fame in 1991 and served as a coach for the United States National Racquetball Team.
Capital Courts was also where his son, Matt, first developed his love for racquet sports, often seen running around the club. It was also where Ed met his loving wife, Holly. They shared a love for racquetball and would go on to win tournaments together over the years. Ed and Holly later relocated to Apex, NC, just outside Raleigh, in the late 1990s.
In Apex, they raised their son Nick. Ed ran the racquetball program for the Cary YMCA for many years and, alongside Holly, coached youth basketball there as well. He continued to pursue his passion for racquet sports and teaching, beginning a 13-year career as a professor at N.C. State that lasted until 2019. While at State, Ed sponsored a successful racquetball club and developed a pickleball curriculum for the Department of Health and Exercise Studies.
Ed’s career as an educator and businessman spanned nearly six decades. His work ethic, dedication, and loyalty earned him the respect of his colleagues and friends and set a lasting example for his children. After retiring from teaching, he continued to support the Wolfpack, enjoyed playing pickleball, spent time with his family and friends, and attended his grandkids’ soccer games.
Ed was preceded in death by his parents and his brother, Arthur. He leaves behind his wife of nearly 28 years, Holly; his two sons, Matt (Jennifer) Remen and Nick Remen; his grandchildren, Clayton and McKenna; his in-laws, John and Ginny; his brothers-in-law David (Helen) and Steve; and many nieces, nephews, and extended family.
Somewhere up above, Ed/Dad/Papa, is getting ready to play racquetball or pickleball, giving it everything he’s got. He will be missed more than he would ever know.
A celebration of life will be held in his honor on Friday, June 27 from 2-5 p.m. in the ballroom of the Kildaire Farms Racquet and Swim Club in Cary, NC, where the family spent countless hours with friends and on the courts. This will be a casual event for friends and family to gather and reflect on the happiness and joy Ed brought to others. Tears and laughter are equally welcome. Feel free to wear your favorite Wolfpack shirt or pop of red to honor Ed’s love for teaching at NC State.
In lieu of flowers, a donation can be made to the Parkinson’s Foundation (www.parkinson.org).
For additional information or for service details, please reach out to the family directly.
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City of Oaks Cremation and Funeral Home is a full-service funeral home in Raleigh, serving all of North Carolina and beyond. We provide an alternative to costly funeral homes and every day we help families in Raleigh, Durham, Chapel Hill and all over North Carolina make simple, affordable funeral arrangements.
Simply having to reach out to a funeral home can feel overwhelming. Our goal is to simplify the entire funeral home experience and make the process as easy as possible. We hope to eliminate any unnecessary surprises by publishing our total cost and the services we provide directly on our website. All of our obituaries are provided free of charge as a way to help families celebrate and commemorate the lives of their loved ones.
Our Promise
Apples to Apples
Just like all other licensed funeral homes in North Carolina, City of Oaks Cremation, LLC is regulated by the NC Board of Funeral Service.
The same laws that apply to the big corporate funeral homes also apply to the modest independently owned firms like ours. All crematories in North Carolina, regardless of who owns them, are inspected annually by the state and must adhere to the same rules and laws.
Genuine Care
We're committed to providing families within our community unsurpassed service before, during and after the time of loss.
Our staff will provide clear communication to your family through each step as we move forward from the original phone call notifying us of a death to the time we deliver the urn back to your family. We will treat your family with the utmost respect, as we honor the wishes of your loved one.
We promise to make this process affordable and as endurable as possible.
State Wide
Our Funeral Home is located in Wake County NC; however, we provide our services to families throughout the entire State.
Unlike other funeral homes, we don't charge an additional mileage fee. Regardless of what county you live in, we can help your family with making simple, affordable funeral arrangements. From Asheville to Wilmington, we're proud to help families statewide.
Our Services
$1196.75
Nobody likes surprise costs added in at the last minute. We guarantee you will not find any hidden charges here. We include everything you need for a simple or direct cremation. Simple, affordable and reliable. We have not changed the cost of our direct cremation service since we opened City of Oaks in 2012.
$2875.66
We offer the option of choosing how you receive your loved ones remains. Selecting our Direct Cremation with Solidified Remains option is a beautiful way to transform cremated remains into 40-60 “stones” that you can hold.
$1917.84
City of Oaks Funeral Home and Cremation provides an affordable cremation option with onsite visitation. Nobody likes surprise costs added in at the last minute. We guarantee you will not find any hidden charges here. Simple, affordable and reliable.
$2497.50
An immediate burial has the same end result as a traditional burial; however, we have eliminated the extra (sometimes unnecessary) services prior to getting to the cemetery. Not everyone wants an open casket for viewing or a limousine for the family. Despite the term immediate, we can move as fast as you need or as slow as you like. This option simply allows you to save money by eliminating some of the fancy extras at the funeral home.
$3033.75
This establishment is one of a select number of funeral homes who meet the criteria for providing green funeral service by the Green Burial Council; a tax-exempt, nonprofit organization working to encourage environmentally sustainability in the field of funeral service. Our Green options allow for a funeral to take place without the use of toxic and non-biodegradable materials/chemicals.
$2640.59
As an alternative to traditional cremation, City of Oaks Funeral Home also offers Aquamation. The Aquamation process, often referred to as alkaline hydrolysis, uses a solution of water and potassium hydroxide to facilitate natural decomposition.
$6081.48
We offer the same traditional funeral services as the big corporately owned funeral homes in the area; however, we cost about half the amount. You might consider a traditional funeral service if your family is looking for an open casket visitation, a traditional church service or a funeral service in the funeral home's chapel. A traditional funeral service can be altered to fit the needs of your family.