Dr. Edwin "Ed" Gunter

Dr. Edwin "Ed" Gunter passed away on July 31, 2026, at LSU Medical Center due to complications following a stroke.

The family will receive friends during a visitation on Saturday, August 15, from 12:30 until 1:00 p.m. at Broadmoor United Methodist Church. A memorial service will follow at 1:00 p.m., with Rev. Dr. Wybra Price officiating. 

Ed was born on November 14, 1939, in Natchitoches, Louisiana. During World War II, his family relocated to San Francisco, California, where he began his education. After the war, they returned to Glenmora, Louisiana, where his father worked and his mother taught school. He grew up in Glenmora and graduated from Glenmora High School in 1957. Ed attended Louisiana Tech University, earning a Bachelor of Science degree in 1961 and a Master of Science degree in Biology in 1962. During his time at Louisiana Tech, he was an active campus leader, serving as president of the Interfraternity Council and participating in Tau Kappa Epsilon (TKE) fraternity and Omicron Delta Kappa (ODK) honorary society. 

Following graduation, he taught at Cumberland College in the Smokey Mountains of Kentucky for several years before pursuing his lifelong dream of becoming a dentist. He earned his Doctor of Dental Surgery degree from the University of Tennessee in 1967. After graduation, he spent three months working with the Memphis Public Health System, providing dental care to underserved children, before moving to Shreveport, Louisiana, later that year. Dr. Gunter practiced general dentistry in Shreveport for 50 years, building lasting relationships with generations of patients. He was a past president of both the Louisiana Dental Association and the Northwest Louisiana Dental Association and was an active member of the American Dental Association. He was also a member of the Ark-La-Tex Dental Academy and was especially proud of his membership in the Southwest Academy of Restorative Dentistry.

Outside of his profession, Ed was a lifelong member of the Northwest Louisiana Lions Club and belonged to both East Ridge Country Club and Southern Trace Country Club during different periods of his life. 

Ed had a passion for reading, hunting, and competitive trapshooting. In 2025, he won the Resident Championship Handicap title in the Senior Veteran Division at the Louisiana State Trapshooting Championships. He also enjoyed writing and he published fourteen stories in DeSoto Life magazine. Above all, however, he treasured his family and friendships. His generosity, loyalty, and love for others defined his life. 

He was preceded in death by his parents, Edwin Gunter Sr. and Harriet Hathorn Gunter. He is survived by his beloved wife, Suzanne Scott Gunter of Shreveport, Louisiana; his sons, Edwin Gunter III and his wife, Kathy, of Woodstock, Georgia, and Brian Gunter of Winnsboro, Louisiana; and his daughters, Kim Guillot and her husband, Harvey, of Shreveport, Louisiana, and Paige Childers and her husband, Preston, of Monroe, Louisiana. He was a proud grandfather to Jack Gunter and Katie Gunter of Woodstock, Georgia; David Gunter of Winnsboro, Louisiana; Lauren Leone and her husband, Ryan, of Aubrey, Texas; and Hannah Burch and her husband, Brennan, of Aubrey, Texas. He was also blessed with three great-grandchildren: Lennon Leone, Lawson Leone, and Bennett Burch. He is also survived by his stepsons, Jeff Briscoe and his wife, Serena, of Wichita Falls, Texas, and Scott Briscoe and his wife, Jennifer, of Wichita Falls, Texas. He was also blessed with his step-grandchildren, Mason Briscoe of Wichita Falls, Texas, and Analiese Hess of Wichita Falls, Texas, and her fiancé, Gunner Pharr. He is further survived by his step-great-granddaughter, Evangeline Pharr of Wichita Falls, Texas. 

Dr. Gunter was a longtime member of the Upper Room Sunday School Class at Broadmoor United Methodist Church.

Honorary pallbearers are Jack Laborde, Dr. John Valiulis, Dr. Marion Cash, Dr. Dennis Stansbury, Darrel Oliveau, Hugh Walmsley, his longtime friends of the Backwoods Hunting Club, where he spent many happy years, and his friends from both the former Shreveport Gun Club and the Barksdale Air Force Base Gun Club. 

In lieu of flowers, the family requests that memorial donations be made to Ducks Unlimited, an organization that reflected Ed's lifelong love of the outdoors, or to your favorite charity.