About Ed Keels

From a very young age I questioned authority and the rules. So many rules. And, whatever the cause, whether it was my genetics or my experiences, the rules didn’t always make sense to me and I wasn’t shy about speaking up and asking, “Why?”

I learned the best way to weather the consequences of questioning the rules is to be as self-reliant as possible. Since having my own money meant self-reliance and independence, I was naturally drawn to making my own money.

At eight years old I awoke to a heavy snow that covered my neighborhood. My friends grabbed their snow sleds. I grabbed my snow shovel. I made money by shoveling walks and driveways before enjoying sledding with my friends. This life-long habit of delayed gratification has earned me the nick-name from my son, “The King of Delayed Gratification.”

At eleven years old I partnered with my cousin in a start-up company where we bought Italian Ice from a wholesaler and sold it to retail customers in Camden, NJ. The money we made was enough to cover the cost of tuition at Harvard at the time. Needless to say, we were very successful.