Wade Funeral Home History

The Wade Funeral Home was founded by Edward A. (Ted) Wade in 1946 on Gordon Avenue in Carbondale. With his wife, Eleanor Doudican Brady, the funeral home moved to its present location at 4 Morris Place in 1950.

An excellent basketball player in his younger days; he played in 3 semi-pro leagues while still in high school - Ted turned down a full scholarship at St. Thomas College, now the University of Scranton. Instead, he followed his dream and enrolled at the Collier School of Embalming in New York City in 1940. He served his apprenticeship under prominent Carbondale funeral director William J. McHale, for whom he had worked as a young man.

After serving in the Army in the Pacific; on the islands of Tinian and Saipan - in World War II, Ted returned to Carbondale and opened his funeral home upon his licensure in 1946.

Looking to expand, Ted and Eleanor and their son Frank, born in 1947, moved to downtown Carbondale, purchasing the home of Morris Rogers. The home, which had previously been a school, hospital, and tailor shop has served as the location of the Wade Funeral Home since 1950.

Ted and Eleanor had another son, Ed, in 1956. Ed has pursued a career in Major League Baseball, including stints as the General Manager of the Philadelphia Phillies and now the Houston Astros.

Over the years, Ted built his business catering to the working families of Carbondale through his ties with the D-H Railroaders he worked with and befriended. Ted was a member of St. Rose of Lima Church, Carbondale, and became friends with generations of priests stationed at St. Rose, especially Fr. Joseph Hickey, Monsignor Thomas Horan, Monsignor William Farrell, Monsignor Kenneth Horan, Fr. Joseph Saltry, and Fr. Vincent Harrity among so many others.

High school student
Ted Wade playing for
the semi-pro Carbondale
Clowns basketball league

SSGT Ted Wade serving
in the South Pacific
during WWII

Ted was a 4th degree member of the Knights of Columbus, a member of the Ancient Order of Hibernians, the American Legion, the Columbia Hose Company, the Veterans of Foreign Wars, the Brotherhood of Railroad Trainmen and the United Transportation Union.

In 1974, Ted retired from the D-H Railroad to concentrate full time on the funeral home, as the business was rapidly expanding, becoming one of the biggest firms in Carbondale.

Ted's oldest son Frank graduated from St. Rose High School in 1964 and the University of Scranton in 1968, taking a job teaching high school at Ben Franklin High that same year. Frank became one of the most popular teachers at Carbondale. In addition to teaching Modern European History, American Government, and Law to thousands of seniors at Carbondale Area, Frank was an assistant basketball coach under Pete Turonis, varsity baseball coach, and head of the Junior Historians. Among other events, he organized the visit of Senator John Heinz to Carbondale Area to speak.

Under the leadership of Frank and his wife, the former Sharon Baker, the funeral home continued to expand, both in the number of families served as well as through several physical renovations to enable the building to accommodate more people. Frank expanded the use of pre-planning and pre-need, becoming a licensed insurance agent for a time.

In 1992, Christopher, Frank's oldest son, graduated from the University of Scranton and enrolled at Simmons School of Mortuary Science in Syracuse. In 1995, Chris was licensed and joined the funeral home while following in his father's footsteps and pursuing an education degree. In addition to being affiliated with the funeral home as a 3rd generation funeral director, Chris is a high school teacher in the Forest City Regional School District.

Wade Funeral Home C. 1950

In a time of increased competition and corporate streamlining, merging with the Parise Funeral Home in January of 2010 makes sense, from both a personal and service standpoint. Says Frank, "My dad and Carmine Parise were friends and worked together as far back as the 1960's. So joining with the Parise family is a natural fit. It allows both funeral homes to offer a wider range of services to the public while ensuring that both firms retain the personal, family touch that has been a hallmark of both families for the last 60 years."

He continues,"My son Chris and Jason and Jeff Parise are all around the same age; they are the young guys and the next generation. Chris is in the same position I was: he wants to remain involved in the funeral home but continues to love working with kids as a teacher. This merger allows us to divide up the work between two families. I'm not retiring and we are not closing. Strategically this allows me to continue to be involved day-to-day. And knowing the Parise's for as long as I have, I can be sure that the tradition of service we've built will remain intact."