Phyllis L. Wade

Phyllis L. Zimmerman-Wade left this world to be with her Lord and Savior on Monday, April 4, 2016, after a long struggle with cancer. Phyllis was born March 24, 1931 in Arkansas City, Kansas to John Blake Livingston and DeLone Erma (Stevenson) Livingston. When Phyllis was 2 years old, her family moved to Ponca City, OK. In 1943 the family moved to Tulsa where the family made their permanent home. Phyllis graduated from Will Rogers High School in 1948. After attending Oklahoma Baptist University, she graduated from the University of Tulsa in 1952 with a degree in Business Administration. Her senior year at TU, she was named "The Business Woman of the Year." After several years of working as an executive or legal secretary, Phyllis enrolled in TU Law School. In 1963 she received her J.D. Degree from Washington College of Law, American University, Washington, D.C. She was admitted to the Oklahoma Bar Association in 1963 and was also admitted to practice before the U.S. Supreme Court, Northern District of Oklahoma. She was a member of Phi Alpha Delta legal fraternity. She practiced mainly in real estate, probate, adoptions and guardianships. Her passion was for adoption law and she handled more than 5,000 adoption cases in her 50 year law career. She was a long-time Fellow of the American Academy of Adoption Attorneys and in 2014, she was nationally honored as an "Angel in Adoption." Phyllis received the Mona Salyer Lambird Spotlight Award from the OBA Women in Law Committee in 2007; selected Top Lawyers for several years, and the temporary judge of the Oklahoma Court of Appeals. She received the Outstanding Community Service Award from the Oklahoma Adoption Coalition of 2003. She was a member of Tulsa County, Oklahoma (past Chairman, Real Property Law section) and American Bar Association; Cherokee Nation Bar Association, Tulsa Title and Probate Association and Oklahoma Association of Women Layers (President, 1967). She maintained an AV@ rating for 25 years with Martindale-Hubbell (rated for legal ability and ethical standards.) She was a long time member of MENSA and INTERTER. Phyllis was raised in Nogales Ave. Baptist Church, Tulsa; later, she joined First Baptist of Tulsa, where she was a member for more than 50 years. She was on the Board of Directors of Day Spring Villa Center for Abused Women and Children. Phyllis loved Christmas year round; as she traveled across the state to various counties, she played Christmas CDs in her car. She imagined the world would be a better place if everyone celebrated Christmas year round. Just how much nicer people would be, how much joy we could share and how much peace there would be. Phyllis was a compassionate and caring person. She believed in being kind, she wanted everyone to be happy, she went out of her way to be helpful; she avoided conflict. She was a strong woman. She maintained a positive outlook on life even in hard times of her life, especially in dealing with cancer. Her faith was unshakeable and Christ shone through her life. Many people heard her express how glad she was that God directed her in the law because she loved every minute of it. She often said that her fifty years of practicing law were the happiest of her life. She loved getting up and going to her office every day; because of her closeness with her clients' lives, she became life-long friends with some of them. She was preceded in death by her parents; her first husband, Ralph E. Zimmerman; her second husband, Arthur L. Wade; her twin daughters, Helen and Ellen Zimmerman (who died in infancy); her brother, Charles R. Livingstone. She is survived by her sister, Janet L. Erwin of Tulsa; four nephews, John, Terry and Michael Livingstone and Loren Erwin and numerous friends. A Memorial service will be held 10:00 A.M., Saturday, April 9, 2016 at First Baptist Church Worship Center. Arrangements are being made by Moore's Funeral Home, Rosewood Chapel, 2570 S. Harvard, Tulsa, OK. 918-744-1202 www.moorefuneral.com

Phyllis L. Wade

March 24, 1931 - April 4, 2016