Edward C. Woodward, 58, Passes Away

Ed Woodward, president of the California Workers’ Compensation Institute (CWCI), collapsed suddenly in his office on Oct. 13 and never regained consciousness. He was 58.

A native of Santa Barbara, Ed was a graduate of UC Santa Barbara and completed postgraduate study at UC Irvine. He began his 36-year career with the State Compensation Insurance Fund where he held a series of management positions.

In 1978, he was appointed assistant deputy commissioner of the U.S. Department of Labor in San Francisco, and three years later joined Oakland-based CWCI for the first time as assistant general manager. Woodward also served as executive vice president of Pacific Compensation Insurance Co. in San Mateo and executive vice president of Enan & Co., a reinsurance intermediary in Burlingame. He returned to CWCI in 1992, and a year later was named president of the nonprofit research organization.

“Ed offered unparalleled leadership and insight to the workers’ compensation community, providing a rational voice in what is often an irrational system,” said Bob Young, CWCI communications director. “Everyone at the Institute feels privileged to have known and worked with a man of such high integrity and intelligence, and there is a profound sense of loss not only for ourselves, but for the entire industry and the entire community.”

Woodward is survived by his wife Danna, his son Kent, and his daughter Katy. Memorial donations may be sent to the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America, 1233 20th St. NW, Ste. 402, Washington, D.C. 20036.