Thomas Magruder Wade III

The Rev. Thomas Magruder Wade, III, entered into eternal life on Thursday, September 13, 2012, after a brief illness. Fr. Wade was 98 years old and a longtime resident of St. Joseph, Louisiana. Funeral services will be held at 11:00 AM on Tuesday, September 18, 2012, at Christ Episcopal Church in St. Joseph, under the direction of Young's Funeral Home, Ferriday. The Right Reverend Jacob W. Owensby, Bishop of The Western Diocese of Louisiana, and the Reverend Robert Cooper will officiate. Burial will be in Natchez Cemetery, Natchez, MIssissippi. Visitation will be in Christ Church from 9:30 AM on Tuesday until the time of services. Fr. Wade was born in St. Joseph on May 3, 1914, to Thomas Magruder Wade, Jr. and Kate LaCour Wade. He attended Marion Military Academy in Alabama, and Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge, graduating from LSU Law School in 1937. He then practiced law in St. Joseph and briefly served as Mayor of the town until December 1941 when he enlisted in the United States Navy. He served as Naval Intelligence Officer aboard the USS Taney in the Pacific theater during World War II. Mr. Wade received his honorable discharge in April 1946 and returned to Baton Rouge. In June 1946, he met Alma Fluitt, a Haynesville native, at the LSU Law Library. They married 6 months later on December 8, 1946. In 1957, Mr. Wade graduated from the Theological Seminary of the University of the South in Sewanee, Tennessee. He was ordained a priest in the Episcopal Church and served as rector of Trinity Church in DeRidder from 1957 until 1960; rector of St. John's Church in Minden from 1960 until 1966; associate rector of St. James in Baton Rouge from 1966 until 1971; and rector of St. Michael's in Pineville from 1971 until his retirement in 1979. He and Mrs. Wade then returned to his childhood home of St. Joseph where he remained until his death. Fr. Wade was preceded in death by his parents and his brother, Burton L. Wade. Fr. Wade is survived by his wife of 66 years, Alma Fluitt Wade, of St. Joseph; their son, Thomas F. Wade, and wife, Marsha Mason Wade, of Baton Rouge; daughter, Roberta L. Wade, of Pineville; three granddaughters, Katherine B. Wade, of New Orleans; Leslie M. Smith and husband Wayne, of Baton Rouge; and Heather M. Webb and husband Rick, also of Baton Rouge; and a great-granddaughter, Sydney Smith, Baton Rouge. He is also survived by his sister-in-law, his step-sister and nieces and nephews. In lieu of flowers, memorial gifts may be made to Christ Episcopal Church, St. Joseph, or to the charity of your choice.