James Henry "Jim" Wadley,
Jr.
Apr 27,1933 - Apr 16, 2010
Posted by: Jo Aguirre
Wadley's Funeral Service
James H. Wadley Jr., 76, died Friday, April 16, 2010, in Purcell.Funeral service will be at 2 p.m. Tuesday at the Wadley's Chapel with the Rev. Steve Lance officiating. Burial will be at Noble IOOF Cemetery. Funeral arrangements are under the direction of Wadley's Funeral Service of Purcell.
Born April 27, 1933, in Clayton, he was the son of James H. and Zora L. (Bray) Wadley. He was raised and attended school in the Talihina area. He married Elna (Peggy) Adams on June 9, 1956, in Wilburton.On July 12, 1956, he was inducted into the United States Army, where he proudly served his country. On June 30, 1962, he was honorably discharged.
He returned to Wilburton, where he was employed by Burke Jones Funeral Home and Hardware Store. The family moved to Texas, where he worked as a police officer for Waxahachie.They returned to McAlester, where he and his wife founded Wadley's EMS in 1967. He also worked for Holsom Bread Company and as a McAlester police officer.
In 1974, he moved his family and business to Purcell. He worked as a Lexington police officer for a few years. Between 1967 and 1981, he opened services in Quinton, Ada, Durant, McAlester, and Noble. Throughout his time in EMS, he was the president of the Oklahoma Ambulance Association, and served under three governors on the State EMS Board, was honored as a Territorial Marshall in 1981, presented by Governor George Nigh.In 1991, he and his wife founded Wadley's Funeral Service . He volunteered as an investigator for the Medical Examiners since 1999. They retired from EMS in 1994.
Of all the awards he had received over the years, he was proudest of the Lifetime Achievement Award given by the Oklahoma Ambulance Association earlier this year. He was a Mason.Survivors include his children, Loyd Wadley and wife, Karen, David Wadley and wife, Lavona, Roger Wadley and wife, Amy, Janie Wadley, Charles Wadley and wife, Rhonda, Jackie Wadley and wife, Cori, Adam Wadley, and Edna Dugger and husband, Gary; siblings, James Edward Wadley and wife, Paula, Helen Green and husband, Elmer, Mary Williams, and Fay Adams and husband, Ralph; grandchildren, Clint and Kristin, Jason and Paige, Jeff and Melaine, Alicia, Tarryn, Tiffany, Tori, Stephanie and Tony, CJ, Cydnie, Meagan and Michael, David and Summer, Devin, and Cameron and Jennifer; great-grandchildren, Pierce, Presley, Ayden, Jaxon, Cassidy, Mackenzie, Tyler, Paige, Blaine, Karma, Kadance, Logan, Kailyn, Nathan, Haley, Hannah, Holden and Ava, and numerous other relatives and friends.
He was preceded in death by his parents; his wife, Peggy; one brother and two sisters.