Lindy Charles Wade, 86, of Sunny Meadows, Princeton, died Friday, October 10, 2014 at Princeton Community Hospital after a long illness. Born in Elmore, February 4, 1928, he was the son of the late Claude Tillman Wade and Lema Philpott Wade. Mr. Wade moved to Princeton from Mullens when he retired in 1990. A child of the Great Depression, he learned to be independent, strong in spirit, hardworking but kind and generous to others. Coming home from school early one day, he was surprised to see hobos on the porch steps eating biscuits his mother had made that morning. “I then realized what happened to all the extra biscuits Mom made every day,” he would say in telling one of his many stories.In September 1942 at age 14, Mr. Wade convinced a US Navy recruiter that he was 17 and started one of his life’s great adventures by serving his country during World War II. He proudly served on the USS Tomich and two sea going tugs. He was serving in the South Pacific at the end of the war. After leaving the service, Mr. Wade returned to Mullens and was hired by the Virginian Railway which he always considered one of his “lucky breaks” in life. He retired in 1990 with 44 years of service as a conductor and was a proud member of the United Transportation Union for 66 years, having served as a union official for many years. He loved his job and his co-workers and told wonderful stories of his railroading days as well as his Navy years and of growing up in Mullens. In 1950 he married the love of his life, Oberita Hazelwood, and devoted himself to her and his family. He loved to garden, to study history, to read his daily newspapers and often wrote letters to the editor throughout the years. He was an avid Princeton Devil Rays fan and rarely missed a game until his declining health kept him from attending. He was a member of the Mullens American Legion Post 106, the Princeton Moose Lodge # 1521, a charter member of the World War II Memorial, and a lifetime member of the Veterans of Underage Military Service. In addition to his parents, he was preceded in death by his wife Oberita Hazelwood Wade, a daughter Teresa Gail Nicholson, his brothers Claude T. “Jack” Wade, Jr., and Dewey “Sweetpea” Wade; and sisters Dorothy Blankenship, Nellie Church, Shirley Snodgrass and Helen Snodgrass. Survivors include his daughters and son-in-law Sandra and Luther Blankenship of Madison Heights, Va; Susie and Dean Morgan of Princeton; Annette & Stan Presley of Shady Springs, and son-in-law Nick Nicholson of Mullens; grandchildren Wendy (Troy) Elder, Lee (Nicole) Blankenship, David (Julie) Simmons, Noel Morgan, Brian (Jen) Presley, Jessica Morgan, Christopher Presley, Dustin Nicholson, Jacob Morgan; great grandchildren Zach Simmons and Caden Blankenship, and loving neighbors Randy and Regina Hatcher. On Monday, October 13, 2014 at 1:00 P.M. we will celebrate the life of Lindy Wade from the Burns Wornal Chapel of the Memorial Funeral Directory on the Athens Road in Princeton with Pastor Gilbert Dodson officiating. Burial will follow in Roselawn Memorial Gardens in Princeton with military honors given under the direction of the Mercer County Honor Guard. Friends may visit with the family Monday from noon until the service hour at the funeral home