Honorable Judge Wayne K. Houser, Jr. age 65 went home to be with the Lord on Monday, December 28, 2020. Wayne, a Knoxville native, was living and working in Atlanta, Georgia. He was a member of First Baptist Church of Atlanta. He was first appointed as an Immigration Judge with the Department of Justice, Executive Office for Immigration Review, in New Orleans in April 2002. He was later appointed to the Atlanta Immigration Court in May 2004. Judge Houser received a bachelor of arts degree from the University of Tennessee in 1976 before obtaining his law school degree in 1978 from Memphis State University. Early in his career, Judge Houser worked as a judicial law clerk in the Court of Criminal appeals for the State of Tennessee from 1981 to 1982. The following years, from 1982 to 1984, he served as an assistant state attorney general for Tennessee.
Judge Houser held a private practice from 1985 through September 1993, when he began serving as a referee judge for the State of Tennessee in Knoxville. He served in this role until his appointment as an immigration judge in April 2002. He was a member of the Tennessee Bar, the Knoxville Bar Association, the American Bar Association, the National Association of Immigration Judges, the Masonic Rites, and the Kentucky Colonel Association. In his spare time, he enjoyed spending time with family, attending church and listening to Pastor Charles Stanley's preaching, farming with his tractor, gardening, going to auto auctions, and hunting. He was also known for his love of traveling, but one of his favorite trips was to an annual WWII reunion in Chattanooga, TN with his father, Wayne K. Houser, Sr., prior to his passing in 2009.
Judge Houser is preceded in death by his parents, Ava P. Houser and Wayne K. Houser, Sr. He is survived by wife Lorenza; daughters Ashley Minton (Tyler), Allison Anderson (Matt), Audrey Houser, and Ava Houser; son Wayne K. Houser III.; grandchildren River, Harlan, Jolene, Ewan, and Aksel; mother-in-law Carolina Escorial; sister Avis Karen Houser Thompson, nephews James Kenneth and Charlie Thompson; and many extended family and friends.
The family will receive friends from 5-7pm Tuesday, January 5, 2021 at Weaver Funeral Home, 5815 Western Ave., Knoxville, Tennessee, 37921 with service to follow; Pastor Hollie Miller officiating. Services will also be streamed live on Weaver Funeral Home’s Facebook page. Family and friends will gather Wednesday, January 6 for a 10:00 am interment at Woodlawn Cemetery; 4500 Woodlawn Pike, Knoxville, Tennessee, 37920. Family asks that masks be worn throughout both services. Condolences are welcome at weaverfuneralservices.com.
