Mother's Hard Work Inspired Bloomfield Environmental Expert

BLOOMFIELD, NJ — Ask Bloomfield resident Kevin Edwards how he learned the value of hard work and he’ll give you a simple reply: his mom.

Edwards, 34, is the technical director of air quality for AKRF, an engineering and environmental consulting firm that works with real estate developers and property owners. In his role as technical director, Edwards consults on some of the largest construction projects in New York City, ensuring that they don’t release pollutants into the air and exacerbate climate change.

He’s also active in his town, where he volunteers to clean up parks and run the books for a PTA committee.

According to his peers, part of Edwards’ secret to success is his tireless work ethic. It’s something that Edwards attributes to his mother, who worked non-stop while raising him and his twin brother on her own.

In the spirit of Mother’s Day, Patch recently asked Edwards three questions about his relationship with his mom. Here’s what he said.

Can you tell us a little more about the challenges your mom faced while raising you and your brother?

“My mom grew up as the youngest of seven children, and ended up having my twin brother (Terrence) and me as the youngest among all of our cousins. My mother and father were divorced before we were born, and my mother raised us. Our youngest years were in eastern Long Island, where we lived with my mother near a beach and much of the time was spent tiring us out. At the time we of course did not know, but my mom was working on getting accepting into an associate’s level program to become a radiation therapist technician.

“Through our pre-school and kindergarten years, we moved back in with my grandparents while my mother went to college for her career. She was one of the first in her family to go to school, and was able to reconnect with my grandparents through a shared responsibility through my brother and me.

“We then lived in my aunt’s house for our year of first grade while my mother saved up to purchase our own house. It was very nerve racking for her, but she was able to go through the entire process and we moved into the town of Lindenhurst. It was always difficult to juggle work, raising us, and having a life of her own (showing me that it is always important not to lose oneself).

“While it was just the three of us in the house, we never felt a loss. We had several close family and friends that all raised my brother and me. The importance I put on supporting and being a part of the community comes from this.”

Can you tell us about a time your mom taught you a lesson about the value of hard work?

“My mom did not often give lessons, but taught me these things through example. Her going through college while raising us and relying on my grandparents is one of the biggest lessons I have ever received. I may not have formalized it into words until I was college aged: that you can always move forward from the position you find yourself in, and rely on those around you. No matter how hard the road forward may look you can move ahead.”

How do you apply the lessons your mom taught you on the job?

“Whenever there is a problem, I will focus on how to move forward instead of looking to how we got there. You look back in order to understand and solve the problem. It is after you have solved the problem that you can start solving the new problem of preventing it from happening again.”

Send local news tips and correction requests to eric.kiefer@patch.com

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