Words by Heath Wade | Images courtesy of The Wade Family

Paula Wade was born in Jasper, Alabama, and spent her career in education. Her family was in the car business, owning Franklin Motor Company, but she grew up with a passion for teaching.

After graduating from The University of Alabama with a bachelor’s and master's degree in English, she took her first teaching job at Dora High School. At Dora, she met her husband, James Wade, who was a fellow teacher. She went on to teach at Maddox Middle School in Jasper for Mr. Wayne Henslee and spent 22 years teaching 11th grade English at Walker High School, working for principals Robert Tucker and Kenneth Abbott.

Because she had attended Walker High School as a student, it was an excellent opportunity for her to return to alma mater as a teacher. She taught there from 1976 until she retired in 1998, accumulating 28 years of teaching experience overall.

My mother loved teaching and was fortunate to be surrounded by other great teachers and educators over the years. Many became close friends with her throughout her life. She also enjoyed working with her students to help them be successful. I remember her talking about students in her class who put in the effort but struggled to make good grades. She had a heart for students who were going through life challenges and would work with them to give them opportunities to help get their grades up.

One of the most memorable things about her was her effort to help students who were struggling to be successful. I still run into her former students today who tell me how she helped them get through 11th grade English or inspired them to go into a teaching career.

After retiring, she spent most of her days living on Smith Lake with her family. She loved a long boat ride and took up fishing as well. When I would come and visit her at the lake, I'd usually find her at the edge of the water fishing; she loved the peacefulness of the lake. She passed away at age 62 in 2009 after a nine-month battle with brain cancer.

After her passing, the Paula Wade Scholarship was founded. The scholarship is awarded to a graduating senior from Jasper High School who will attend Bevill State Community College. The scholarship is awarded to a graduating senior who has shown initiative and hard work during their time at the high school, rather than being based on GPA. We wanted to make sure this scholarship honored my mother’s philosophy of helping students to further their education while giving them an opportunity to be successful. 78