Mick Fanning and his brother Edward, who recently passed away. Photo: Instagram//Mick Fanning
Tragedy struck the Fanning family when Edward Fanning passed away recently. While the cause of death hasn’t been released at the time of this writing, it appears that he passed away in Madagascar, where he was working as a surf instructor. Edward was the older brother of Mick Fanning, and Mick posted an emotional message to him on Instagram a few days after the news broke.
Ed is the third brother in the Fanning family to pass away. In 2015, Peter Fanning died in his sleep from a health condition, and Sean Fanning was killed in a Coolangatta car wreck in 1998.
One can only imagine the heartbreak Mick is feeling right now, and his message is a poignant one. We’ll post it here in its entirety.
Ed,
Love you my brother. You taught me so much over the years about everything that life could deal up. The good and the bad, you were my teacher. You introduced us all to surfing, the joy and freedom of riding a wave. The meaning of going to the ends of the earth to find waves to following a passion in the belief that surfing could be that ultimate job. As the years went on you would fall in and out of the ocean but your pure talent would always shine through. To where you ended up teaching kids the joy of riding a wave. Without you, I’m not sure what the world would of made of me, so thank you 🙏🏼
Ed, you had the biggest heart and were too loyal for your own good. Always sticking up for the underdog and caring for those who needed help. You gave everyone everything you had, and if you didn’t have it you’d still give it to them. You made your friends feel like super heroes and gave so many people the funniest memories that will last a life time.
I know at times you found it hard to find your happy place. It warms my heart to know you found it these last few years. To hear the excitement in your voice each time we talked filled me with hope.
I wish you could accept all the love people would give you. You weren’t perfect but no one wanted you to be. We just loved Ed. The Larrikin who would throw a shaka in every photo and would scream yeeeeew at the top of his lungs. As you dance down that final road into that eternal sunset please know we all love you mate. 🤙🏼🤙🏼 YEEEEEEEEEWWW HAHA🤙🏼🤙🏼
Our sincerest condolences go out to Mick, his family, and anyone affected by Ed’s tragic passing.
