My brother Lee was an avid outdoorsman. For the longest time, you couldn’t pull him off of a boat offshore fishing or from the duck holes of Eastern North Carolina. Those were his two loves, and there was a third, following Widespread Panic. He must have easily attended 100 shows. If I’m not mistaken, one of his first shows, before they became popular, was in our hometown of Greenville on 10/24/97 @ Minges Arena, East Carolina University.

One of Lee’s favorite songs was Chilly Water. He liked it because our family business is a three-generation ice company in Eastern NC, where water is pulled from a well, and was one of the song's main lyrics. Our grandfather, J. Carl Hartsfield, Jr., was a well driller who installed many commercial wells throughout Eastern North Carolina. He also installed the Carolina Ice Company wells.

My brother started Chilly Water Sportfishing on 6/3/2010 with his love of fishing and a 43’ Jarrett Bay he named Chilly Water. Lee fished a few Big Rock Tournaments on his boat, Hatteras, and other offshore fishing tournaments on the East Coast. His incredible passion for boat ownership had its ups and downs.

Ultimately, on 12/7/2012, he decided to try starting a guide service for hunters and fishers, which he called Chilly Water Outfitters LLC. The service compiled a list of hunting destinations—think of it as Craig’s List for the hunting and fishing world. When trying to start the new service, it fell into hard times due to high technological costs. That endeavor ran its course, and he returned to the family ice business.

We often joked about bottling our water because our water comes from the Black Creek Aquifer and is most likely some of the best water on the eastern seaboard. The equipment was expensive at the time, and the market was becoming saturated with plastic bottles. I will not bore you with the rest of the story, but my brother went on to try new business adventures, get married, and had a daughter. Unfortunately, we lost him to unforeseen circumstances a few years later in 2020.

It’s hard picking up the pieces after watching my parents lose a child. Losing your only sibling also takes a toll on your soul. You want to immortalize them, even if they weren’t perfect. Maybe by doing so, we can keep them close to our hearts.

A short time after pursuing the water, we decided to name it in memory of his favorite, “Chilly Water.” After all, we are an ice company making water products. We decided on a can because my brother Lee would have loved that it’s ocean-friendly, which he could get behind.

After years of research and development, we are officially now producing “Chilly Water™️,” and we couldn’t be more excited about the possibilities of eliminating plastics while being able to support some healthy, good causes in memory of my brother. 

Sincerely,

Stuart M. Edwards

President / Founder  

“Chilly Water™️”