Sam Wadee

Sam Yaw Kobi Wadee was born in Tarkwa, Ghana on 14th February 1957, the fifth of nine children of Mr. Manford Kwame Wadee and Mrs. Ethel Florence Wadee, both of blessed memory. His father was an Electrical Engineer and Technical Education Officer stationed successively at the Technical Institutes in Tarkwa, Kumasi and Accra, where bungalow No. 3 at the Accra Polytechnic (now Accra Technical University) was the family home for over fifteen years. His mother was a Principal Nursing Officer who worked variously at the Ridge Hospital, Accra, Tema General Hospital, Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital, Kumasi, Princess Marie-Louise Hospital, Accra and the Ghana American Red Cross.
His maternal grandfather was the late Reverend James Thomas Roberts, a pre-eminent educationist who established the Accra High School at Ayalolo, Accra in 1923, the first secondary school in the then Eastern Province of the Gold Coast and the erstwhile Asante Collegiate (now Osei Kyeretwie Senior High School) in 1935, the first secondary school in the then Province of Ashanti.
Sam grew up in a home full of adoring siblings, five sisters and four brothers. His parents were sticklers for discipline, hard work and good manners - values and traits that were enforced in the Wadee home without compromise.
Under the watchful gaze of his parents, Sam, like his siblings, took his turn at household chores and made sure these were completed within the time allotted. This early training in handling assignments and responsibilities at home laid the foundations for Sam's outlook on life and the work ethic that he embraced to accomplish his life's goals.
Sam was adventurous and enjoyed the outdoors very much. The sprawling compound of Accra Polytechnic offered Sam the opportunity to explore the environs outside home. The 1960's post-independence years of Ghana witnessed a trove of activities next door at the offices of the Trades Union Congress (TUC) and the headquarters of the Convention People's Party (CPP) a short distance away. Sam and his siblings would stray into the vicinities of these institutions to observe and interpret in their very young minds, the meanings of all these goings-on.
Sam started his schooling at the New Era Preparatory School in Tudu and continued at the Saint Joseph's Catholic School in Adabraka, both in Accra. The daily walks to and from school further stimulated Sam's curiosity as he observed the ebb and flow of life in the world outside his home.
He sat and passed the Common Entrance Examination and gained admission to Oda Secondary School (Odasco) where the boarding arrangement introduced him to students from all parts of Ghana, some of whom he bonded with and became life-long friends. He belonged to the 1975 Year Group.
Sam continued his education at the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) where he graduated in Data Processing. Sam's desire for self-improvement and to further his education saw him relocate to the United States by way of London, where he stayed briefly to earn a living. He settled in New Jersey and by dint of hard work, he earned a Master of Business Administration (Management of Technology) at the New Jersey Institute of Technology, Newark, NJ and also a Master of Science (Management Information Systems) at the same Institute.
In his professional life, Sam's peers are unanimous in acknowledging him as a highly organized and results-driven technical leader. He was a seasoned Information Technology consulting expert with over twenty years extensive expertise in Oracle technologies, including the planning, design, deployment, support, and cloud migration of enterprise solutions, while maintaining up-to-date knowledge of evolving Oracle platforms.
Additionally, Sam was a senior-level IT professional with a broad range of consulting experience and a proven track record of delivering practical, business-aligned technology solutions that minimized risk and maximized value. Sam was recognized for his strong analytical and problem-solving abilities, with a keen aptitude for resolving complex technical issues, driving system improvements, and analyzing and redefining business processes.
Additionally, Sam was an effective communicator and collaborator, as well as skilled in interpersonal, written, and verbal communication. He had the ability to consult on technology initiatives, lead cross-functional teams, and build strong, productive relationships. He demonstrated a consistent ability to design, develop, and implement highly successful automated solutions to address complex business challenges.
Sam's professional experience spanned a number of high profile businesses, including: Technical Project Manager at Client Confidential, New York City Metropolitan Area (March 2021 – until recently); Systems Architect Oracle/PeopleSoft Technical Consultant at Florida Department of Financial Services (FL PALM), Tallahassee, FL (September 2021 – October 2023 & March 2017 – July 2020); Consultant at the State of Ohio Administrative Knowledge System (OAKS) Technology Infrastructure Refresh Project, Columbus, OH (March 2021 – September 2023); Senior Manager at Dixon Goodman Hughes, New York, NY (January 2015 – March 2017); Technical Project Manager at Converta Holding, Inc., Morristown, NJ (January 2012 – November 2015); Manager at Deloitte Consulting, Florham Park, NJ (January 2012 – November 2015); Senior Managing Consultant at IBM Business Consulting, Piscataway, NJ (October 2002 – October 2010) and Senior Consultant at Price Water House Coopers (PwC) Consulting, New York, NY (July 2000 – October 2002).
Sam was very polite, sociable, outgoing and gregarious. He enjoyed being in the company of other people. He was a regular guest at gatherings of relatives and friends across the United States and visited Ghana once a while to stay in touch with family and associates. He settled in North Brunswick where he raised his daughter, Alison. He enjoyed a circle of very close friends who took interest in his welfare and looked after his interests for which he was profoundly grateful. In recent years, Sam had been ailing from a heart and respiratory condition and his recovery from a major surgery in 2022 was seen as nothing short of a miracle. He resumed his schedule at a reduced pace but subsequently, suffered a series of relapses. He proved to be a fighter and was determined to beat the odds by showing repeated signs of recovery. Unfortunately, in the early hours of Friday 19th December 2025, in one of the cycles of recovery that gave hope to family and friends, he succumbed unexpectedly to the icy hands of death.
DEAR SAM, WE WILL HOLD YOU CLOSE IN OUR THOUGHTS AND IN OUR HEARTS TODAY AND FOREVER. YOU WILL BE MISSED BUT NEVER FORGOTTEN. MAY YOU REST IN PEACE