Memorial service for Bill Wadman

There will be a memorial service for William G. (Bill) Wadman at our church on Saturday, July 9 at 3 p.m.

As the obituary in the Maine Sunday Telegram said this past Sunday, Bill “ended his grand journey on this earth (on June 27), surrounded by his three loving children, Jeff, Marcia, and John, and his dear wife and best friend, Norma Montgomery Wadman. In the presence of his loved ones, he passed peacefully and happily, yet it is contended that he spent his last moments contemplating how to elicit one final laugh out of his precious Norma.”

From the early days of this church, Bill had been one of the cornerstones. For a December, 2008 profile in the church newsletter, Bill said that he and Norma had been church members since the mid-1950s and he thought they were members Nos. 91 and 92. He was a key member of the church committee that made the decisons and carried through the plan to move the church to its current location from what is now the Church of the Nazarene on Route 77.

For the newsletter interview, when asked what he liked best about the Cape Elizabeth United Methodist Church, Bill said, “Through thick and thin, it’s been there for us during all our time in Cape Elizabeth.”

Here are some of Bill’s other comments from the 2008 newsletter profile:

• Keys to success: Bill credits the success of nearly 60 years of marriage to Norma’s cooking and the fact they both have “low centers of gravity — when you’re shorter, people don’t pick up as many germs as people who are taller.”
• Career you would have liked to work in: “A group singer with a big band. I always liked Glenn Miller, Tommy Dorsey and later, the Four Freshmen. I sang a little with the Bowdoin Polar Bears, a jazz band. We played at dance halls during the summer, but that’s as far as I went with my singing.”
• Favorite destination: “Upta camp on Highland Lake in Falmouth, or the island of Rhodes in the eastern Meditteranean. Our camp has been in the family for 50 years. We started going there for summers in the early ’70s to help out my mother after my father died.”
• What would be a perfect day for you? “Surrounded by our kids and grandkids on a lovely summer day at the lake. Deering wins, Bowdoin wins, the Pats win, and the Giants win. For many years there wasn’t a pro football team in New England and the Giants were our team — and for many they still are.”
• What is your passion? “I’ve always felt the need to give back for what’s been a happy, successful life for us. Hence, trusteeships for our church, the town library, my college (Bowdoin), the Maine Audubon Scoiety, Children’s Theater, three terms on our Town Council, 16 years on the Conservation Commission, founding member of the Land Trust, and a couple of state jobs with the Maine State Housing Commission, and the Department of Environmental Protection.”

In lieu of flowers, Bill’s family has said contributions may be made in Bill’s memory to:

• The Cape Elizabeth United Methodist Church
• The Bowdoin Alumni Fund
• The Thomas Memorial Library
• The Cape Elizabeth Land Trust