Earl Lee Wade

Earl Lee Wade, 87, died at home, surrounded by loved ones, on Wednesday, June 7, 2017. A lifelong resident of Lynchburg, Virginia, Mr. Wade was a graduate of E. C. Glass High School and was awarded his B.A. with highest honors from Lynchburg College. When he retired from Intermet in 1995, Mr. Wade capped off nearly a half-century of service to the company he went to work for in 1948, then known as Lynchburg Foundry Company.

The son of Mary Scruggs Wade and Robert Lee Wade, Earl Wade was only ever called “Mr. Wade” by his son-in-law Bobby. It was a sign of respect that Mr. Wade cherished from the man he permitted to marry his only daughter. Known as Earl, Uncle Earl, Daddy (pronounced Did-ee), Granddaddy, Frienddaddy, and GGD, he is survived by his wife, Phyllis; daughter and son-in-law Karen and Bobby Campbell, son and daughter-in-law Kevin and Janet Wade, and daughter-in-law Debra Wade; grandchildren, Amy Leigh Campbell, Troy Campbell and his wife Kristin, Courtney Wade, Scott Wade, Emily Roberti, and Matthew Wade; great-grandchildren, Lila Jane, Mason, Davis, and Weston; brother and his wife, Curtis and Marie Wade, and sisters-in-law Willie Sue Wade and Phyllis Wade.

He was preceded in death by his son Craig Wade; brothers, James A. “Jimmy” Wade of Tulsa, Oklahoma and Robert “Bob” Wade of Chattanooga, Tennessee; and sister and brother-in-law Betty and Vernon Spencer of Lynchburg, Virginia.

Quick with a joke and overflowing with kindness, Mr. Wade led an exemplary life in all respects, leaving a lasting legacy in the life lessons he modeled for his family and friends, among them his adopted neighborhood grandsons Nick Kameno, Daniel Wood, and Mike Brisson. These young men, plus the countless others they and his children and grandchildren brought into his orbit, gave his retirement years the kind of joy he specifically sought – to live, love, tell stories, and teach. If you see a turtle on a fencepost, you know it had help getting there. Mr. Wade improved the view of all who had the great fortune to know him. His own great fortune, he often remarked, was to marry his love, the beautiful and talented young Phyllis Jean Staples in 1951. Together, they adventured and built a life, collecting innumerable friends over almost seven decades of marriage.

An avid gardener and tinkerer, Mr. Wade loved nature, and wished that in lieu of flowers, donations be made in his name to the life passions of his eldest grandchildren, whose accomplishments with these institutions in recent years brought him deep and abiding pride: Sweet Briar College Annual Fund, 134 Chapel Road, Sweet Briar, Virginia 24595 (www.sbc.edu) and Shepherd’s Men, PO Drawer R, Marietta, Georgia 30061 (www.shepherdsmen.com).

The family will receive visitors Saturday, June 10, 2017 from 5:00 – 6:30pm at Whitten Monelison Chapel in Madison Heights, Virginia.

To send online condolences to the family, please visit www.whittenmonelison.com