Wade Wilkes Herring

He was born on June 27, 1932 in Columbia, South Carolina. His parents were the late Wade Howard Herring and the late Kathleen Wilkes Herring, who divorced when Mr. Herring was age three. Mr. Herring never knew his father, but he enjoyed knowing and loved his father’s extended family.

As a young child, Mr. Herring lived with his grandmother, Mattie Lou Byars Wilkes, in Chester, South Carolina, and he remembered her with love and affection. Mr. Herring and his mother, a school teacher, later moved to Stokes, South Carolina, and then to Walterboro. Mr. Herring graduated from Walterboro High School in 1950.

Mr. Herring received his undergraduate degree from Wofford College in 1954, where he was a member of Delta Sigma Phi. He earned a M.Ed. degree from the University of Georgia in 1970, where he was a member of the Phi Kappa Phi Honor Society.

At Wofford, Mr. Herring joined ROTC to secure clothes and a winter coat. Years later, when Mr. Herring and his friends competed for “who had the poorest childhood,” Mr. Herring usually won. Following college, Mr. Herring served in the United States Army from 1954 through 1963, achieving the rank of captain. Mr. Herring served in Germany and South Korea, as well as at Ft. Benning.

Mr. Herring married Fredrice Trull of Canton, North Carolina, on June 8, 1957. They met on a blind date as she was completing her education at Chapel Hill, and he was briefly attending seminary at Duke during a short interlude from the Army. Mr. Herring frequently said that his marriage was the best thing he ever did.

After leaving the Army the final time, Mr. Herring moved his young family to Macon in 1964 where he began work with Vocational Rehabilitation, continuing there until his retirement in 1996. Mr. Herring was honored as counselor of the year for the state of Georgia on three different occasions. He received the Elkins Award in 1970.

In the early 1970s, as the state of Georgia moved away from a model of large mental health hospitals where patients were housed for decades, the state funded halfway houses to allow patients to transition from hospital to society. Mr. Herring opened and ran the first such halfway house after overcoming the objections of “not in my backyard” opponents.

Mr. Herring was an active volunteer. He was a member of the National and Georgia Rehabilitation Associations. For years, Mr. Herring volunteered on a weekly basis as a counselor for family members of alcoholics at the Bibb County Alcohol Clinic. He served as president of the Macon Association for Retarded Citizens. He was a board member of Wesley Glen where he was recognized with the Trustees’ Award. He was a past president of the Lions Club and Macon Toastmasters. He volunteered with the Boy Scouts. During the Vietnam War, Mr. Herring served as chair of the draft board in Macon, having been charged with “taking out the politics” from the selection process.

Mr. Herring was a long-time member of Vineville United Methodist Church, serving in a variety of capacities, including seventh grade Sunday school teacher, president of the Webb Fellowship Class, and chair of the Council on Ministries.

Mr. Herring’s interests included Wofford, Walterboro, fishing (his boat was named Working Wife), tennis, photography, and reading, especially history. He loved telling a good story, and he had no objection to repeating his favorites.

In addition to his wife, Mr. Herring is survived by his son, Wade W. Herring, II (Susan) of Savannah, Georgia; daughter Caroline Neal (Charles) of Wilmington, North Carolina; and daughter Camille Herring of Columbia, South Carolina; five grandchildren; and one great-grandchild. Other survivors include Mr. Herring’s sisters, Gwen Schaefer and Rose Burgess, daughters of Mr. Herring’s father from his second marriage.

The family will meet with friends at the Grand at Carlyle Place in Macon on Friday, October 26, from 4:00 to 6:00 p.m. The funeral service will be at Vineville United Methodist Church on Saturday, October 27, at 2:00 p.m., with Dr. Jimmy Asbell and Rev. Grace Guyton officiating. Internment will occur at a later date. The family suggests that remembrances be made to Wofford College or Vineville United Methodist Church. Don’t cry past Tuesday.

Visit www.snowscs.com to express tributes.

Snow’s Memorial Chapel, 746 Cherry Street, Macon, GA has charge of arrangements.