Paul Farris Wallace

It is with deep sorrow that we announce the passing of Paul F. Wallace who was born to Farris and Bessie Wallace on June 25, 1941, in Toledo, Ohio. He was called home to be with his Heavenly Father on November 8, 2025, at Discovery Village in Southlake, Texas. His beloved wife Mary Rodne was by his side at the time of his passing.

Mary was the love of his life. They had many shared interests including music, barbershop harmony, photography, traveling and community involvement. They shared their love and interests for more than 20 years.

Paul had a love for music. He started playing trombone in third grade and played in school bands in elementary, junior high and high school. After graduating from Whitmer High School in Toledo, he went on to receive his Bachelor of Arts Degree in Music Education from Abilene Christian University (ACU) in Abilene, Texas, and a Master of Arts Degree in Music Education from West Texas State University in Canyon, Texas. While at Abilene Christian, he was a member of the concert band and the orchestra, which allowed him to tour two weeks each year performing concerts and competitions in many states.

When he graduated from ACU, he became a Band Director for DeLeon and Eastland High Schools. At each school, he built a band program from the ground up and earned Division 1 status. Also, his bands earned top marks in University Interscholastic League (UIL) band competitions. Next, he went on to become an Assistant Band Director at Nimitz High School in the Irving School District, which had a top performing band program. Also, he served as an Assistant Band Director, at West Texas State University, while he was working on his master’s degree.

His most cherished music affiliation was being a chorus member of the renowned Vocal Majority Chorus (VM). He joined in 1985 and performed with them for 35 years. During his time with the chorus, he competed with the VM chorus in numerous Barbershop Harmony Society international contests, where he won twelve medals, of which nine were gold. Paul’s VM performance highlights included singing with the Mormon Tabernacle Choir on two occasions and concerts in the United Kingdom. It was during one of these contests in Miami, FL, he met his wife Mary Rodne who was performing with her barbershop harmony chorus.

Paul worked in the transportation industry from 1973 until his retirement from Dallas Area Rapid Transit (DART) in 2019. While teaching, he launched his career in transportation, driving limousines and charters for Trailways Bus System during the summers. After teaching, he transitioned into their management program and rose to Manager of Operations. When Trailways was sold, he became Vice President of Superior Coach Sales of Texas. Later, he was employed by the Dallas Transit Company, now known as DART. During his time with DART, he worked in several departments including bus and light rail train operations, training (as a supervisor), quality assurance, scheduling, information technology, and regulatory compliance. He also led a pilot program which resulted in enhancing the efficiency of bus routes and became known as the subject-matter expert in IT for field operations. During his 34-year career with DART, Paul was recognized with ten efficiency awards.

Paul was an avid photographer starting his own business where he took thousands of photos at various venues including weddings, youth sports, and local government and community events. Noteworthy were Paul’s efforts in volunteering at the Colleyville Library and City of Colleyville special events, taking photos and designing and building various props for library summer reading programs.

In addition to photography, Paul also was a woodworker selling a variety of his custom-made writing pens, business card cases, and other items at First Monday Trade Days in Canton, TX and other area craft shows. Additionally, he enjoyed traveling, especially going on cruises, and riding his custom-built recumbent bike where he could be seen cruising through the community enjoying the weather and talking to others on various paths.

He leaves behind a legacy that will be cherished and remembered by his family and the many friends that will miss him dearly. In addition to his wife Mary Rodne, Paul is survived by his son Greg Wallace, his son’s mother Elizabeth Wallace, his brother Mark (Lois) Wallace, many nieces and a nephew. He is preceded in death by his parents Farris and Bessie, and his sister Syble Chandler.

The family would like to thank the staff at Baylor, Scott & White Medical Center - Grapevine and Discovery Village at Southlake for the kind and compassionate care he received.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Vocal Majority at https://vocalmajority.com/donate/. On that page donors can specify “In Memory of Paul Wallace”. Donations can be made directly to Vocal Majority at P.O. Box 3063 Coppell, Texas, 75019. Also, donations can be made to Insight for Living, (ministry of Pastor Chuck Swindoll), P.O. Box 5000, Frisco, TX 75034.